Knights, Nerds and Rainy Day Naps
by lightblue-Nymphadora
Summary: Rachel and Santana get closer during the summer before senior year. Eventually Pezberry. Mentions of Samcedes, former Finchel, and epic Quinndependence.
1. Summer Jobs

_**LbN: Third in the "Protecting the Dwarf" series. A lot of you asked me to continue, so here we go! Happy reading :)**_

"Do you have everything you need, Santana?" her dad asked, kissing her forehead.

"All good," she said. "How long will you and mom be gone?"

"Just for the month. You can have Brittany over if you want."

She thought about telling them, again, that Brittany was in Amsterdam for three weeks, but decided against it. "Okay," she said. "Have a safe flight."

"Thanks sweetie," her mom said. "Don't burn the house down while we're gone."

"I never do," she muttered, closing the door behind them. With a sigh, she walked back upstairs to get ready for work.

* * *

"Hi, Aunt Judy!" Santana called through the window as Quinn walked to the car.

"Hi sweetie! Oooh! Let me get a picture of you two getting ready to leave."

"Oh, Mom," Quinn huffed.

"Stop that," Judy said, still grinning. "I'm your mother, and this is your first summer job. I'm allowed to take three memory cards worth of pictures." She took a couple of the pair sitting in the car, and gave Quinn a kiss. "Alright, I'm done," she said. "Have good first days!"

"Thanks, Aunt Judy!" Santana said, waving before she pulled off.

"You indulge her craziness far too much," Quinn said, laughing. "I think she likes you better than me."

"While I am quite lovable, I don't think she'd pick me over her 'little blonde angel'," Santana said, smirking.

"I thought we said we weren't going to mention that ever again," Quinn grumbled.

Santana laughed.

"We're picking up Rachel, right?" Quinn asked.

"Yeah."

"I have to admit, I didn't really understand your sudden need to be her own personal Rosalie Hale—"

"No more fucking Twilight for you…."

"However," Quinn continued. "You must be having a damn good influence. And vice versa. You been generally less threatening, and she showed her badass side after that Finn debacle at Nationals."

Santana grinned as they pulled into Rachel's subdivision. "That was pretty badass."

* * *

"_What the hell was that, Finn?" Quinn yelled._

"_You thought it would win Rachel back, you mean," Mike snapped._

"_Why are you all yelling at me?" Finn roared. "She kissed me back!"_

"_Of course she did, you gelatinous tub of stupid!" Santana snapped. "It would've been worse if she'd pushed your jiggly ass away in front of everyone!"_

"_That's enough, Santana," Will said._

"_Are you serious, Mr. Schue?" Rachel asked. "Besides being completely inappropriate in a performance setting, Finn and I have been broken up for months now. I have constantly resisted his advances since then. What that amounted to was a small scale case of sexual assault."_

"_Oh come on!" Finn said. "I just thought it would add emotion."_

"_It added to our emotions alright…the negative ones," Artie grumbled._

"_Okay, you guys!" Will said. "Finn gets it. No more surprises in the next round, okay Finn?"_

"_If we get to the next round." Rachel said. "And Finn, the next time you decide to get handsy, you will find yourself missing a vital part of your anatomy."_

* * *

Rachel was just coming out as they pulled up. "Morning, Santana, Quinn."

"Hey Rachel," Quinn said. "You ready for endless masses of screaming, sugared up kids?"

"And demanding, bitchy parents?" Rachel added. "Born ready."

Santana laughed. "Concessions at the theater. You poor schmucks."

"Laugh it up, Santana," Quinn said, smirking. "But the stories coming from the Lima Book Nook's children's section are infamous. There's an entire Facebook page dedicated to former employees' horror stories."

"No worries, Blondie. I'm never going near that section."

"Sure," Rachel said.

* * *

"No, ma'am," Quinn said. "We don't stock cupcakes or popsicles."

"See," the woman told her son. "They don't have any."

"You're a bitch!" the boy asked.

Rachel's mouth dropped open. She looked over to Quinn, who was trying very hard not to laugh.

"Nathan! That's not nice. What would Daddy say if he heard you talking to me like that?"

"He'd agree," the boy snapped. "I want a popsicle!"

"Nathan, sweetie, they don't have any. Remember, dolphin, Nathan? Dolphin?"

Rachel looked over at Quinn as she handed an older man his drink. The blonde looked just as confused as she was.

"Dolphin," the woman continued, as her son tried to kick her in the shins. "Our secret word. When I say 'dolphin' that means I need you to behave."

"Hey, little man," Quinn said, taking pity on this poor woman. "We have hot dogs and pizza. How about a pepperoni pizza?"

"Fine," the boy huffed. "Make it quick."

Rachel, filling an extra large slushie now, saw the kid take a few steps back and shut his mouth. She didn't need to look at her friend to know that Quinn had her HBIC eyebrow quirk on. "Hello sir—oh! Hi Finn! What can I get for you?"

"Uh, I'll just have a medium Coke. And some Skittles. You look nice."

"Thank you. Here you go—it's seven dollars."

"Hey, when do you get off?" he asked.

"At two, but I have plans with Santana."

Finn's face darkened. "You're still hanging out with her…. Why?"

"Finn, there's a line behind you. I have to work. Enjoy your movie."

He grumbled and stalked off.

Quinn spared her a sympathetic glance before they went back to taking people's orders.


	2. Dr Who?

_**LbN: I'll try to have an update posted every few days. No promises though...it's finals time. Happy reading :)**_

"Morning, Santana!"

"Oh, hey Rachel. Are we carpooling today?"

"I thought since you drove for most of the week, I could drive today."

"Cool. Come on in. I'm just making a smoothie and then I'll be ready."

Rachel followed her to the kitchen. "Are your parents at work already?"

"They're not here. They left Monday for their annual trip to Portugal."

"When are they coming back?"

"Sometime next month."

"Santana!"

"What? I'm used to it. Oh, speaking of…they said I could have someone stay with me. Well, technically they said I could have Brittany over, but she's getting high with her cousins in Amsterdam."

"I hardly think that Brittany would participate in such an irresponsible—she would, wouldn't she?" Rachel amended, seeing Santana's look.

Santana just laughed. "Definitely. So, you in?"

"In what? Oh! I'll have to ask my dads. And I'm sure they won't want me to stay the whole month…."

"That's cool. You and Quinn can make a schedule or something," she said, smirking. "Let's go."

* * *

Daycare trips. No one had warned her about them. Rachel was positive that about half of the kids she'd had to coral that day were possessed by the most vindictive of demons. The other half were budding sociopaths.

"Fuck every single asshole involved in the creation and upbringing of these monsters," Quinn gasped after one particularly precious angel tossed a soda at her head.

"Normally I don't criticize parenting choices," Rachel said, sweeping up a mountain of spilled popcorn. "Seeing as I haven't been in the position to judge. However, in this case, I'd agree with you."

By the time she stopped by the Book Nook to pick up Santana, she was ready to drop.

"Still up for coming—whoa!" Santana said. "Never mind; you look wrecked."

"I'm still perfectly interested in staying with you tonight," Rachel said. "Just so long as you didn't have anything planned that would require me to move around much."

Santana refrained from making a dirty joke. "Pizza. Movie. Sleep. They made me pinch hit in the café during the lunch rush. I'm pretty beat too. So what happened to you?"

"Demon children," Rachel said, voice deepening dramatically.

Santana laughed as they drove. "Hey wait…where are we going? My house is that way."

"I'm kidnapping you," Rachel said cheerfully.

"Oh god…they're going to find my body in the woods next week, aren't they?" Santana teased.

Rachel spared her a smirk before turning her eyes back to the road. "Oh, sweetie, if I killed you, no one would find your body."

Santana had a feeling this was true.

"We're going to my house," Rachel explained. "I have a feeling my dads will be more receptive to a prolonged sleepover if they actually talk to you about it."

Berry Dad number one was already home when they got there.

"Yo, Mr. B!" Santana called.

"I thought we talked about this, Santana," Hiram called back, smiling.

"Right, right…I get to call you Hiram. Force of habit, you know."

"Are you staying for dinner?" he asked.

"Actually, Daddy, Santana has plans to kidnap me."

"Again with the kidnapping," Santana said. "Is there something you need to tell me?"

"Hush."

Hiram just smiled at the two of them. He'd gotten used to these interactions over the last few months.

"Santana's parents are gone for a month, and they said she could have a friend stay over."

"A month?"

"Don't worry, I'm not suggesting she stays over for the entire time," Santana said. "We just wanted to do a movie night tonight."

"I'm fine with that. Call us before you turn in."

"We will, Daddy," Rachel said, hugging him.

* * *

"Your dads are going to make me stay with you guys, aren't they?" Santana asked when they got back to her house.

"Probably. I'm sure the only reason he didn't insist on us staying there tonight was a) because he wanted to give Dad a heads up and/or b) he wanted alone time with Dad."

"Dads Berry gotta get their swerve on sometime."

"SANTANA!"

Santana laughed as Rachel covered her ears and hummed "La la la, I can't hear you!" She pulled the pizza out of the oven and started making the popcorn.

"What are you doing to it?" Rachel asked.

"Making it delicious?" Santana answered, pouring generous amounts of chocolate and caramel into the popcorn bowl and mixing it with a plastic spatula.

"That can't be healthy."

"It's yuuummmy!" Santana said, holding the bowl out. "I even went to the Tofu Shack and picked up vegan toppings so you can have some. Didn't even know caramel came in vegan…but whatev."

They took their food into the theater room (which Santana called the Diva Den). Rachel took her time inspecting the wall of movies.

"What's this doctor show, Santana? I've never heard of it."

"Which one, Princess?" Santana asked, reverting back to her new nickname for the diva.

"Dr. Who."

Santana froze. "You've never heard of…Are you serious?"

"What is it? Is it gory? I can only handle about 50 percent of Grey's Anatomy most of the time, so if—What?" she asked, because Santana was just staring at her.

"This is unacceptable." She got up and put in one of the discs.

"What is—"

"Shhh! Just watch."

* * *

"I'm not speaking to you anymore."

"Good, your judgment is clearly clouded, and I don't want it to have an adverse effect on mine."

"HOW are you not a Number 11 fan?" Santana asked.

"I thought Number 10 was more sympathetic. This one's pretentious."

"I'm cutting you off."

"From what?"

"My luscious good looks. You have to go home now."

"It's three in the morning, Santana. My dads would kill you if you actually kicked me out."

They'd watched the first and last episodes of series one so Rachel could get the idea of the series, then skipped directly to season ten. It was then that the diva found out her friend was a hopeless nerd when it came to these shows. She also had a thing for the 11th Doctor.

"You're delusional," Santana huffed.

"You're a nerd."

"I am not!"

"You are."

"I'm a knight, damn it! Knights are not nerds."

"Whatever you say," Rachel said through a yawn.

"I suppose, since you obviously don't appreciate this Doctor, we can go to sleep."

Rachel chuckled and followed Santana out of the theater room and upstairs.

* * *

_**LbN: Hope you liked it! Leave a review and let me know :)**_


	3. Cuddle Monsters and Cupid Missions

_**LbN: Happy reading! Don't forget to leave a review ;)****  
**_

Rachel tried to move, but found she couldn't. She really had to pee. Wait…arm around waist. Her arm? Santana's arm. She tried to squirm away, but the girl had a really good grip.

"Be still…tryin' sleep…." Santana muttered.

"Santana, I have to use the restroom!" Rachel said.

Santana stirred a bit, then opened her eyes. "Oh! Er…sorry."

"Who knew…Santana Lopez: Cheerio, Dr. Who nerd, cuddle monster…."

"I am not a cuddle monster!" Santana squeaked as Rachel went into the bathroom.

* * *

"I'm not a cuddle monster," Santana said as they drove to the Lima Bean.

"Oh, for… Santana, that was two hours ago!" Rachel said, laughing.

"Just wanted to make my point clear."

"Well, it would be perfectly fine if you were. I happen to like being snuggled."

"Are you offering up your services as my own personal teddy bear?"

"Are you going to admit you're a cuddle monster?"

"No."

"Then no."

"You're infuriating."

"I try."

By the time they'd reached the Lima Bean, Rachel was laughing hysterically, trying to make sense of Santana's "Dr. Who Made Me Snuggle" theory. It was impossible.

"Should I even ask?" Quinn wondered aloud as they walked up.

"Not if you know what's good for you," Santana said, glaring at Rachel.

"Morning, Quinn!"

"You mean afternoon?" the blonde said. "You two lazy bums didn't answer your phones until 10:30."

"This one kept me up all night watching Dr. Who."

"Oh, Jesus. Been there…sorry."

"It's not my fault you have no appreciation for good science fiction," Santana grumbled.

Quinn and Rachel both laughed at this as they got in line to order.

* * *

"Brittany!"

"Hi Quinn! How's Lima?"

"Same as how you left it," Quinn said. "I need your advice on something."

"Yes, fries and ranch works just as well as fries with barbeque sauce."

Quinn paused. "Good to know. There's something else too though…."

"Is it about Santana?"

"Yeah. Her and Rachel were acting…odd today."

"What do you mean?"

"Like…they were giggly and…crap, I don't even know."

"That's okay, I'll help you. Were they acting more like Kurt and Mercedes, or like Kurt and Blaine?"

Quinn's mouth dropped open at this. "Oh my dear God…they were acting like Kurt and Blaine! Like, completely minus the Eskimo kisses. That's where the urge to vomit rainbows was coming from!"

"Uh…Quinn if you're puking rainbows, you need to go see a doctor."

"No, Britt, I'm not. It was just an expression. But they're totally into each other!"

Brittany was distracted momentarily by her cousin handing her a rather large brownie. "I love these things," she mumbled. "Anyway, Quinn, you should play cupid!"

"Seriously?" Quinn asked.

"Yep!"

"The thought does intrigue me…." The blonde got a completely devilish smile then. "I'll think about it. You take it easy with those brownies, okay?"

"Okay! Bye, Quinn!"

"Bye, Britt!" Quinn said, ending their video call. She looked down at her phone, wondering which girl to pester first. This was going to be fun.

* * *

"Excuse me, miss, but do you happen to know where I could find a copy of _Lesbian Sex Secrets for Men_?"

Santana nearly bumped her head on the shelf. She looked up to find a smug-looking Quinn smirking at her. "Fabray, I'm working here."

"I know." Quinn had been trying to play Love Connection with the two girls all weekend, but so far, nothing. "I told you, I need a book."

"You need a head doctor. Why aren't you at work?"

"Someone set rats loose in one of the theaters. We shut down so the exterminator could come in."

"Yuck. Wait, where's Rachel then?"

Quinn rolled her eyes. "I dropped her off at home. And you're doing nothing to disprove my theory right now…."

"Look, I've already told you, I'm not harboring any lady lovin' for Princess."

"PRINCESS?"

"Shit," Santana mumbled. She'd forgotten that she only used that name when she and Rachel were alone. "Doesn't matter. She's totes not my type. Plus she thinks I'm a cuddle monster, and I refuse—"

"Whoa, back up…. Why, exactly, does Rachel Berry think you're a cuddle monster?" Quinn asked, grinning.

"Nothing, Fabray! Go away," she whined.

"Fine, I'll stop tormenting you," Quinn said, laughing. "Britt's getting back in a couple of weeks. Sleepover?"

"My house," Santana said, nodding.

"Sounds good," Quinn said, giving her a friendly nudge with her shoulder. "I'll call you later."

Santana went back to stocking books. Her peace was short-lived, however.

"Umm…hi. Santana, right?"

She looked up again to see a boy in a McKinley High letterman. "Yeah, that's me," she said. "You look familiar. Have I threatened you before?"

He laughed. "No, but you've cheered for me a few times. Colby Vaitre, former McKinley soccer captain."

"Oh, right! Great season you guys had this year."

"Thanks," he said, smiling. "Hey, I'm doing a summer program at Lima Community College. I need this book, but I'm not finding it."

"_The Book of Awesome_. Yeah, I know where it is. Come on." She guided him through the maze of shelves to the "Self Help" section. "Here you go," she said. "Let me know if it's any good."

"I will. Thanks," he said.

She didn't miss the once-over he gave her before he walked away. She hated it when guys did that. It made her feel skeevy. She was a firm believer in the theory that if someone thought a person looked hot, they should verbalize it. She wasn't there for people to privately enjoy, damn it. They could at least let her know. With a sigh, she went back to her shelving section.

* * *

"AARRRGH!" Rachel groaned.

"What's the matter, honey?" Hiram asked.

"I'm trying to explain to Santana, yet again, why the 10th Doctor is a more sympathetic character than the 11th."

"Doctor? As in Dr. Who?" Leroy asked, peering over his daughter's shoulder. He chuckled at the wall of text. "Do you mind?"

"Be my guest," Rachel huffed. "Just make sure to tell her it's from you." She got up and wandered into the kitchen. As she poured herself a glass of apple juice, she heard laughter from the other room. "What?" she asked, walking back in. She picked up her laptop and read what her father had written. "DADDY!"

**BwayGoldStar: Hello, Santana! This is Rachel's father, Leroy. I just wanted to let you know that you're both wrong. Clearly Doctor 7 is the best. **

**BwayGoldStar: Hi, Santana! This is Rachel's other father, Hiram. I happen to agree with you in this debate.**

**PradaKnight: Knew I always liked you, Mr. B. :)**


	4. Boy Troubles

**Knights Nerds Naps**

"Why are you grumpy this morning, Santana?" Rachel asked. She smiled as they walked out of the Lima Bean and got into Santana's car. "Is it because you miss Brittany?"

"Nah…I mean, yeah I do miss Britt, but that's not why I'm grumpy…."

"What's up?"

"I have Kids' Korner duty all week," Santana grumbled.

"Ah," Rachel said. "You'll finally understand Quinn's and my pain."

"I'm fully expecting a sadistic 'I told you so' from her. Brittany's coming back on Friday. Sleepover at my place?"

"Sure! I'll let my dads know tonight. Your parents will be home next week, then?"

"Uhh…"

"Santana…."

"They're staying another month."

"The fuck?"

Santana very nearly crashed into a stop sign. "Did…did you just…"

"Yes, I just said fuck! Because I'm confused as to how your parents are just okay with leaving you on your own for two months. What the actual fuck?"

"Calm down, Princess," Santana said, grinning.

"My dads really are going to make you stay with us now. I gave them a big speech about your independence and need for personal space, and they bought it. But now they're going to insist."

"Eurgh… Just tell them after our sleepover on Friday. Anyway, go sell popcorn," she said, pulling up in front of the theater.

"Right. Try not to kill any kids."

"I'll be fine."

"Right…I bet you come out of there traumatized. They may be little, but kids are vicious."

"I'm too badass."

"Bet?"

"Loser buys dinner at Breadstix on Wednesday?"

"Sure. Have a good day, Santana!" she chirped, hugging the other girl.

* * *

"Oh no," Rachel muttered.

"What's wrong?" Quinn asked. She looked over at the ticket counter. They were having a slow afternoon, and had a clear view of it. "Oh…Finn. Go hide in back. I'll get rid of him."

"I owe you." She went into the kitchen and stood just inside the door so she could listen to the conversation.

"Hey Finn!" Quinn said. "What can I get for you?"

"Skittles and a small coke. Where did Rachel go?"

"Someone puke in theater three. She's on cleanup."

"She'll be back in a minute though, right?"

Quinn sighed. "Listen, Finn…I really think she's ready to move on. You should let her."

"I love her, Quinn. And I'm willing to fight for her."

"That's adorably Nicholas Sparks novel of you, but really…you've been here every day this summer. She's said no to you asking her out four times now. You're getting into stalker territory here."

"I appreciate your concern, Quinn," Finn said. "But I know what I'm doing here. I'll see you later."

Rachel waited a moment before going back outside. "Thanks Quinn."

"I tried."

"I really don't know what to do with him."

"He'll get the picture eventually. And if he doesn't, my mom's a card carrying member of the NRA. She's got your back." Quinn winked and went to set up more snack packs.

* * *

"Your boyfriend's back, Santana," one of her coworkers said.

"Not again," she grumbled.

"I don't see why you're complaining. He's cute."

"I don't care if he's Brad Pitt. I'm not interested. OW!" she yelped as one of the kids at the reading center kicked her in the shins. She was ready to concede the bet to Rachel. Actually, she'd been ready since the glitter incident at 1:30.

"Hey!" Colby said to the little boy. "You kicked her. Say you're sorry."

"I'm sorry," the boy muttered. He stuck his tongue out at Colby as soon as the soccer player turned back to Santana.

She snickered and gave the boy a thumbs up. "What's up? You need another book?"

"No," Colby said. "Just wanted to say hi."

Santana scowled as he looked her up and down again. She was starting to really hate that. He was lucky there were kids around…. "Look, I've got to go make sure they're not destroying the merchandise. Whoever thought up pop-up books for kids needs to be shot…."

Colby laughed. "I'll see you around then."

* * *

Rachel stretched as she exited the theater. It hadn't been too bad of a day, but she was tired. And extremely curious to know how Santana was doing. Her phone buzzed as she walked down the steps.

_From Santana: Running l8, but omw. Also, you win. You so fucking win.  
_

She giggled and sat down on a bench to wait for her friend. She waved at Quinn as the blonde came down the steps. "See you tomorrow."

"Is Santana not here yet?" Quinn asked. "Do you want me to wait with you?"

"It's okay. I know you have dinner plans with your mom. She's on her way now."

"Alright. See you tomorrow, then."

"Bye." She scanned the parking lot for Santana's car again, but didn't spot it. She did, however, spot Finn. "Have you been here all day?" she asked when he walked over.

"Since around 2. I saw Harry Potter twice. How are you?"

"Good. Hungry and tired."

"We could go—"

"I have plans with Santana."

"You always have plans with her. I don't get it, Rachel," he said, sitting next to her. "I know she changed last semester, but this is getting ridiculous."

"What? The fact that I have friends now without having to get you to tell them to be nice to me?" she asked bitterly.

"The fact that you do everything she says now. You go everywhere with her. You're dressing differently."

"Because school's out. And I don't do everything she says. We make plans and hang out. Quinn comes with us half the time."

"It's like you're dating her."

"You sound like Quinn. And why am I hearing your accusatory voice?"

"Maybe it's in your head."

"Maybe you're full of—"

"Rachel?" Santana called, pulling up. "You ready?"

"Yes, Santana. See you around, Finn."

* * *

Wednesday night, the girls went to Breadstix just as they'd planned. Quinn had made a few pointed comments, but they'd both ignored her.

"Okay, best part of the day?" Rachel asked.

"Right now. Worst part of your day?"

"Finn came to the theater again."

"For god's sake…."

"Is that…paste in your hair?"

"I washed it twice. It's not coming out. There's glitter too, but you can only see it when my hair catches the light."

"Had you run craft time again?"

"Yep. Uh…if I told you not to turn around, would you listen?"

Rachel turned around. Finn had just walked in with Sam and Mike. She turned around again quickly, but she knew he'd spotted her.

"I told you not to."

"No you didn't!" Rachel hissed. "You posed a hypothetical question!"

"It was a hint!"

"Give better ones!"

"What are you doing here with her?" Finn said as soon as he walked up.

"Having dinner, Finneptitude," Santana growled. "And you're kind of ruining it."

"Why are you here with her?" Finn asked Rachel again.

"It's as Santana says. We're simply having dinner. Also recounting horror stories from work."

"Is this a date?"

"You sound like Quinn," both girls said, not meeting each other's eyes.

"Yo, Finn! Let's go! They're starting the bread stick challenge in five," Mike said, waving to the girls.

He glared at Santana before walking away.

"This shit is getting old, fast," Santana said. "You've got Finnocence stalking you…I've got Soccer-creeper stalking me—"

"Huh?"

With a sigh, Santana grabbed another bread stick and began relating her visits from Colby. "It's not that he's done anything," Santana said. "He just creeps me out a bit."

"Boys," Rachel said, shaking her head.

_Amen_, Santana thought.


	5. Girls' Day Out

_**LbN: Sorry this took so long. Finals...you know how it is. :)**_

They looked ridiculous, and it was awesome. Santana was happy that no one had called the news station yet, because if the cameras made it out there, they'd definitely be on Lima Local at five o'clock. She was currently dressed in duck-shaped sunglasses, and a beer helmet that had the straws removed. Instead of beer cans, the holders had rubber ducks in them. Quinn was carrying a duck plushie the size of a small child, and Rachel had a banner that read "Welcome Home, Brittany!" It was decorated in duck and unicorn stickers, of course.

"We look awesome," Santana said, laughing.

"Brittany will love it," Rachel said. "Though I'm surprised security let us in with all of this."

"It's not like we're trying to get to a gate," Quinn said. "Oh! I think I see her!"

Rachel couldn't see her over the people in front of them, but she most definitely heard the excited squeal when she held up the sign. A few moments later, Brittany had rushed over to hug all of them.

"Oh my gosh, this is awesome!" she squeaked as Quinn handed her the life-size duck.

"Are you super tired, Britt?" Santana asked. "We thought we'd go do a round of Putt-Putt Golf and then hit Breadstix before our sleepover."

"Okay. I am tired, actually, but if I sleep now, I won't be able to later. Let's go golf!"

* * *

"So…are you two dating yet?" Brittany asked, trying not to smile.

"Oh for—Quinn! You corrupted my bestie!" Santana snapped.

Quinn and Brittany just laughed.

"I, for one, still don't quite understand why the two of you seem to think that Santana and I are harboring unresolved sexual tension for each other."

Quinn stepped up to take her shot. "The pet names, the cuddling—"

"You told her we cuddled?" Rachel whispered.

"I didn't mean to! It just slipped out!"

"The quiet, married couple-esque arguments, the hand holding—"

"Whoa!" Brittany said, grinning. "Hand holding?"

"I was rescuing her from the Jolly Green Giant!"

"What?" Brittany asked, confused.

"Finn," Quinn explained. "He was wearing green that day."

"Oh…."

"Then there's always those little glances and smiles you give to each other when you think the other isn't looking," Quinn said, getting a hole in one.

"Please, shut up, Quinn," Santana said.

Quinn laughed. "Your turn, S."

Santana gently tapped the ball with her club. It looked like it would be a hole in one as well, but a little boy ran up and kicked it.

"My turn!" he yelled.

Rachel, who'd had a lot of practice at this while Brittany was away, slapped her hand over Santana's mouth before the younger girl could get a syllable out.

"Skylar, sweetie, you knocked that girl's ball away," the weary mother said. "Can you please say you're sorry?"

"NO!"

"Saw that coming," Santana said.

The lady glared at her. "You're really too old to be playing mini-golf anyway."

"Either that, or he's too young," Santana said. "If he can't wait his turn without kicking people's balls away, then it's probably his age that's the problem, not mine."

The woman sputtered, and was getting ready to say more, when something else caught Santana's attention.

"Shit," she murmured.

"What's wrong?" Quinn asked.

"Colby's here. How the hell does he just turn up wherever I am?"

"Watch your language, young lady!" the woman hissed.

"Don't worry, Santana," Rachel said. "I've got this."

"What are you going to—"

"Hey, Santana!" Colby said. "Didn't think I'd get to see my girl at the mini golf course today!"

"Who's this, baby?" Rachel asked, bouncing over to Santana and taking her hand.

"I…er…this is Colby," Santana sputtered. She registered Quinn and Brittany's giggling in the background, but ignored it. "He comes into the bookshop sometimes."

"Oh…nice to meet you," Rachel said. She shook Colby's hand with a smile on her face, but the other three could tell that she squeezed a bit too hard to be polite.

"So, you're one of Santana's friends?" he asked suspiciously.

"You could say that." The look she shot Santana really should have been illegal, the younger girl thought. "Anyway, we should get back to our game. We have plans later."

"It was good seeing you, Santana," Colby said, stalking off.

Quinn was doubled over behind the Troll Mountain sign when the other two came back to them. Brittany just smiled.

"It's about time," she said.

"That was not an admission of any latent homosexual feelings," Rachel insisted, walking up to take a shot. "I just happen to be a good actress, and I thought that he might leave Santana alone if he thought she was taken."

"Sure, Berry," Quinn said.

* * *

"Best meal you ever had?" Brittany asked. They were all in Santana's living room, playing a cheesy "getting to know you" game and eating pizza.

"Rachel's dads made bacon cheeseburgers the other night," Santana said. "I saw Jesus, it was so good."

"Why haven't I experienced this?" Quinn asked, perking up at the mention of her favorite food.

"I'll have them make them again next week, and you can come over," Rachel promised.

"I thought you were a vegan…." Brittany said, nibbling on a Twix bar.

"Vegan cheese and vegan bacon on a veggie burger for me."

"Heresy," Quinn said.

Santana laughed and grabbed her phone as it rang. She didn't recognize the number, but picked up anyway. "Hello?"

"Hey Santana! It's Colby."

"Er…hi. Um…out of curiosity—"

"Got your number from Hudson. Hope you don't mind. Listen, some friends and I are headed to see a band play at one of the bars. I could get you in, if you want to come."

"Thanks, Colby, but I'm in the middle of a girls' night."

"Some other time, maybe?"

"I don't know…. Look, I have to go. See you."

"Bye."

"Why does he have your number?" Rachel asked.

"Sound a little jealous, Rachel," Quinn quipped.

"Shut it, Q."

"Pyramid Nipples gave it to him," Santana grumbled.

"That's creepy," Brittany said. "He asked Finn for your phone number instead of asking you?"

"This guy's triggering my spider senses, too," Quinn agreed. "You say he comes into the store every day?"

"Without fail. He doesn't bother me…."

"There's a 'but' coming," Rachel guessed.

"He always sits in my section. The rest of the people working there think it's cute, but it is kind of skeevy."

"Have you talked to your manager?" Quinn asked.

"Not yet."

"You should," Rachel said.

Santana nodded silently. "Fucking boys…."

"Exactly," Quinn said. "I'm totally going off of men senior year."

"Joining our team, Q?" Santana asked, smirking.

"No," Quinn told her. "I've just come to the conclusion that high school relationships are too complicated for me to handle. I want this year to be amazing. I want to leave McKinley knowing I made a mark—somehow. And I'm not getting tangled up in a love triangle, or—god help me—another pregnancy scare, or even regular relationship drama. No boys, until they can match or exceed my maturity level. I'm on my own until Yale."

Brittany raised her root beer float in the air. "Here's to the year of Quinndependence."

"Damn straight," Santana said, as the girls toasted.


	6. Another Knight

**Knights Nerds Naps**

By the second week of July, Rachel and Santana's prediction had come true and the Fathers Berry had insisted Santana stay with them. It was nice, though. She was completely taken aback the first time they'd called her down for family dinner, but she was starting to like it.

"That's dangerous," she told Rachel as they got ready to leave for work. "I won't have this in another few weeks…I shouldn't get used to it."

"Santana, my dads love you. You could show up every night of senior year, and I'm sure they'd be fine with it."

Santana smiled and muttered, "Don't tempt me…."

There was a honk outside.

"Blaine's here!"

"Why?" Santana asked.

"Er…I may have enlisted his help. I'm worried about Colby."

Santana smiled over at her as they walked out. "Rachel, I'm fine. I mean, yeah, he creeps me out, but—"

"But nothing. If he's hanging around the bookshop, then so is Blaine."

"Since when did you become my protector?" Santana teased.

"Calm down—I'm still the princess and you're still the knight. But as princess I have power to make sure other knights look out for my favorite one."

Santana laughed and held the door open for Rachel. "Hey Blaine."

"Morning ladies! Movie theater first, right?"

"Please and thanks, Blaine."

He pulled away from the curb as Santana whistled Hi-Ho It's Off to Work We Go.

* * *

The bookstore was packed that day, for which Santana was very grateful. She was running around finding things for so many people that she barely registered Colby's presence. "Alright, four copies of Catcher in the Rye. Can I help you with anything else?" she asked the woman.

"No, thank you though."

"Have a good day," Santana said as the woman walked to the front.

"Take a break, Lopez," her boss said. "Good job this morning. Get something to eat."

"Thanks, Mr. Cross." She shuffled her way through the crowd, seeing Blaine wave a sandwich over his head in the café area. Plopping down in the seat next to him, she asked, "That's for me, right?"

"Of course. Plus a Diet Dr. Pepper."

"You're a saint."

"Rachel said she'd eviscerate me if I let you get hurt in any way, so I'm guessing she meant fainting from exhaustion as well."

Santana snorted and nibbled the sandwich. "Thanks," she said sincerely.

"No problem."

"For everything, I mean. I'm sure you have better things to do than babysit me."

"I'm not babysitting. I'm looking out for a friend. Rachel said that no one was really taking you seriously."

"Cross is, kind of. He told me to trust my gut, and that I could throw him out if it came to it."

"I'll be here. As much as possible, at least. I do have to take econ this summer. But that's only Tuesdays and Thursdays in the morning."

"Why are you taking econ? That's a senior course."

"Get's it out of the way. I'll be able to take another elective senior year."

"Smart, Anderson." She wished she'd thought of it, actually. "Well…back to the grind."

"Shelving?"

"After this morning, yeah. God only knows how many stacks of books I'm going to go through."

"I'll park myself in the history section."

Santana gave him a parting fist bump before wandering back out into the store area. One of her coworkers, Emily, smiled and nodded to Colby. Santana rolled her eyes and started reshelving the mountain of books on one of the tables.

"You know, I'm starting to think you're ignoring me."

"Hey Colby," she muttered through gritted teeth. "I'm working, not ignoring you."

"Want to go to dinner this Friday?" he asked. Except it sounded less like a question and more like a demand.

"Look, Colby. You seem like a cool dude," she said, lying through her teeth, "But I'm not interested in anything other than friendship right now."

"Who was the guy you were having lunch with?" he demanded.

"Not that it's any of your business, but that's Blaine. He's a friend from glee club."

Colby gave something between a sneer and a chuckle, and walked off. "Think about it," he called back to her. "I'll text you later."

"I'm going to have to change my number," she murmured.

* * *

"Can you drop me at my house? I left my phone charger." Santana asked as Blaine drove her home.

"Sure thing."

They sang along to Blaine's built in car karaoke system for a while. Santana got quiet as she listened to him sing Home, by Daughtry. She turned the volume down once the song was over.

"We're bros now, you know that right?"

"Oh god…why do I get the feeling an initiation ceremony with Puck is imminent?" Blaine asked, looking truly terrified.

Santana laughed. "I'll make you a deal. You be honest about this next question, and I won't involve Puck. Or the paddle. There will still be booze, and possibly strippers."

"Deal. Ask away."

"You're just like me, aren't you? I mean…your situation with your parents."

Blaine was quiet for a second, then nodded. "I think yours have a bit of a one-up though, honestly. Your mom's around from time to time, and they're both okay with you being gay."

"True. So, here's my proposition: we hang out this year. Any time one of us is feeling lonely. If you can't get to Kurt, or I can't hang with Rachel, we're there for each other. Other times too, not just when we're being family-pathetic."

Blaine pulled over and put the car in park. "I feel like I'm having an out of body experience right now."

"Why, because it turns out I have a heart?"

"Because I never thought I'd have a best friend like this," he said softly.

"Well, now you do. So is that a yes?"

"It's a yes. On one condition…."

"This is a trap, I know it."

"Stop lying to yourself about Rachel. For god's sake, just ask her out. It's exhausting to look at the two of you." He put the car back in gear and pulled off.

Santana just smiled.


	7. Courage

_**Knights Nerds Naps**_

It took her three days. Blaine, in his new capacity as one of Santana's bros, had dutifully called her a pussy until she caved. Actually, he'd been more tactful for the first two days, simply calling her a wuss or just saying "Courage" every time he saw her. The third day was when he went full on Lima Heights Adjacent.

"Fuck, Santana! Stop being a pussy and just ask her out."

Santana actually dropped her Wii controller. "Did…Blaine Warbler, did you just…?"

"Yep. And my last name is Anderson."

"Okay. Just checking."

That afternoon, she purposely left his house late so that Rachel would be home already when she got there. She found her lounging in the living room when she got there. "Good day?"

"Eh…it was okay. How about you?"

"Fine."

"Did you have fun at Blaine's?"

"Yeah, we just played video games the whole time."

Rachel looked up and smiled. "You like video games?"

"Yeah…. Who doesn't?"

"Which console?"

"Wii. Hey, look, can I talk to you about something?"

"Sure," Rachel said, patting the seat next to her.

Santana sat down and took a deep breath. "I was just wondering…I mean, it's cool if you don't want to, but…"

"Santana, you're kind of hyperventilating," Rachel said calmly. She took the other girl's hand.

"Sorry. I was wondering if—"

"Evening girls!" Leroy Berry called as he and Hiram entered through the garage. "We brought dinner."

Santana nearly jumped out of her skin, dropping Rachel's hand in the process.

Rachel just smiled. "Later?"

"Uh…yeah."

* * *

Rachel bounced into the guest bedroom later that evening and sat next to Santana on the bed. "What did you want to ask me earlier?"

It was now or never. And as she was really not okay with a former Warbler questioning her badassness, she chose now. "Will you go on a date with me?"

"Sure."

Wait…what? It couldn't be that easy. No dramatic speeches about feelings, or questioning Santana's intentions? "Uh…run that by me again?"

Rachel giggled. "I said sure. I would love to go on a date with you."

Santana smiled. "Really?"

"I know that our friendship is relatively new, but Quinn's constant badgering did get me thinking…and I'd like to try this."

"Sweet. You have tomorrow night off, right?"

Rachel thought for a second, then nodded.

"Good, I'll pick you up at seven."

"Santana, you live here."

"I'll be planning our awesome evening all day, though."

"What will we be doing?"

"Just going to have to wait and see, Princess."

* * *

The next night, Rachel paced the hallway until she saw Santana's car pull up. She smiled and waited by the door, remembering their conversation earlier that day.

"_You really won't tell me where we're going?"_

"_Nope! And the pout isn't going to work, so don't even try it. One other thing?"_

"_Yes, Santana?"_

"_I'm going to attempt to be chivalrous tonight, so please let me open doors for you."_

_Rachel laughed. "Okay…I'll tone down the fierce independence for the night."_

"_Thanks."_

Rachel's mouth dropped open when she opened the door and saw Santana standing there. Her…god, it was weird to say it… her girlfriend was wearing the same outfit she'd worn for Blame It On the Alcohol, but with red "fuck me" heels.

"You look gorgeous," they said at the same time, and then laughed.

"Come on," Santana said, holding out her hand.

"Back by twelve, girls!" Hiram called.

"Got it, Mr. B!"

They got in the car and Santana turned the volume down on the radio so they could talk.

"We're rather dressed up for Breadstix," Rachel commented.

"Oh, we're not going to Breadstix tonight. That's where we always go, and I wanted tonight to be special."

"Aww, Santana…."

"Yeah, yeah…." Santana mumbled, trying not to grin like an idiot. While she wouldn't admit it aloud, she was really happy to have someone to spoil. She drove for about fifteen minutes before pulling into a crowded parking lot.

"Skylight?" Rachel asked, looking out at Lima's only "high end" restaurant. "Seriously? Can we even get in?"

"I called and let them know we were coming. My dad's friends with the owner."

One of the hosts greeted them at the door and showed them to a private table on the upper level. It was secluded, but allowed them to look out on the lower level.

"Let's us people watch if we want," Santana said with a wink. "This place has great vegetarian options, and they'll modify anything you want if it's not strictly vegan."

"This is amazing, Santana."

"I told you…I wanted it to be special. And I love this place."

"Do you come here a lot?"

"No. I've only been a few times. My dad brings me sometimes…when the guilt is starting to get to him." She smiled over at Rachel. "Don't worry about it." Her phone buzzed.

"Brittany or Quinn?" Rachel asked, smiling.

"Colby," Santana grumbled. "Not even opening it. So, are you and Quinn hanging out this weekend."

"She's dragging me to a literature exhibition in Cinncinati."

"Oh grilled cheesus…."

"It should be highly informative, at the very least."

"Also known as boring."

Rachel laughed as the waiter came to take their order.

They talked about everything, nothing…. It was kind of weird that nothing had really changed. Santana had expected things to be awkward for the first couple of dates, but it seemed like they were the same now as when they were just friends. Which, she hated to admit, was exactly what Q, Brittany and Blaine had been saying.

* * *

"I had a great time, Santana," Rachel said quietly as they walked back into the house. She stood on tip toe and kissed the other girl.

This time Santana really did grin like an idiot. "I…um…good. I'm glad. I should probably go to bed. Have to work in the morning."

"I should get to bed too. Quinn's coming to get me at nine tomorrow. Um…can I put this on Facebook?" Rachel asked.

Santana laughed. "Sure. I'm sure Quinn's wondering why I didn't answer her texts all day."

Rachel smiled brightly as they walked up the stairs. "Goodnight!" she said, going into her room.

"Night, Princess."

* * *

_**Rachel B. Berry: Had a great date at Skylight with Santana!**_

_17 people like this._

_**Quinn: About. Freaking. Time.**_

_**Brittany: I thought that place was made up….**_

_**Santana: You're thinking Skyrim, Britt.**_

_**Puck: Wait, date? Why didn't the Puckster know about this?**_

_**Blaine: Courage. :)**_

_**Tina: You and Santana? This year's going to be interesting….**_

_**Mercedes: If by interesting you mean a hot damn mess.**_

_**Santana: Tone it down, Wheezy. **_

_**Artie: Saw it coming.**_

_**Kurt: Since when?**_

_**Artie: Since Rachel's miraculous makeover.**_

_**Finn: Why'd you delete my first comment?**_

_**Rachel: Because I try to keep my profile free of profanity. College recruiters look at that kind of thing, you know.**_

_**Santana: Plus, you were being an ass, Frankenteen. Night, Princess!**_

_**Rachel: Night, S!**_

* * *

_**LbN: I think Rachel needs to give Santana a nickname. Any ideas?  
**_


	8. Snix and Warbz

**Knights Nerds Naps**

"I'll see you tomorrow," Santana said, hugging Rachel. "Don't get kidnapped by any skeevey Cincinnati men."

Rachel laughed. "I'm sure Quinn will protect me."

"That's right, S. She's in good hands. Now let's get going, or we'll miss the 18th Century prose seminar."

Santana gave them both a Look, but released Rachel from the hug. "Bye."

"Bye."

The two waved at Santana as they drove off. Santana smiled and went back into the house to grab her bags.

"Santana?"

"Oh, hey Leroy."

"Are you heading off too?"

"Yeah. The books call to me," she joked.

He chuckled. "You're not planning on staying alone tonight, are you? Just because Rachel's away doesn't mean you can't come home."

Santana's chest constricted at that. Home. Holy shit, this place felt like home. "No, I…I'm staying over at Blaine's house. We're having a video game battle of epic proportions. He's got a wall sized TV and all of the Halo games."

Rachel's dad smiled. "Okay. Just making sure. Have a good day at work." He kissed her on the forehead and walked back into the living room.

Santana heard Blaine honking and picked up her bag. "Thanks," she whispered, not realizing she'd said it aloud. She walked out to the car, head down.

"Are you okay?" Blaine asked.

"Fine." She sniffed.

"Really? Because you look like you're about to cry."

"No one's crying," she insisted. "Just drive, Gay Warbler."

Chuckling, Blaine pulled away from the curb.

* * *

"Can you run story time, please?" Cross asked. "Gorman called in sick. Just one book, then you can herd them over to arts and crafts."

"No problem, so long as I can do Seuss."

"Have at it."

She grabbed a copy of The Lorax from the shelves and headed over to the Kids' Korner. There were a few children running around, and a few had already gathered at the Giving Tree for story time. "Story time!" Santana called. Another six kids made their way over, and when they and their parents were settled, she introduced herself. "Hi guys and girls! I'm Santana. We're going to read The Lorax today. Who knows who wrote this book?"

"Dr. Seuss!" a few kids shouted.

"Very good!" She decided to switch things up and sing some of the lines from the story, like on the movie. "At the far end of town where the Grickle Grass grows, and the wind smells slow and sour when it blows, and no birds ever sing excepting old crows, is the street of the lifted Lorax," she sang.

Interestingly enough, there weren't that many interruptions that day. She made a mental note to sing at the little monsters more often.

"Your voice is beautiful," one of the moms said.

"Thanks!"

"You're on phones with Max, Santana," Cross called from the registers.

She grinned and ran to the back. Phones were the best, because the things people called in to ask were fucking hilarious. The system also allowed her to play god a bit, because multiple calls came through at once, and you could accept, decline or keep the poor suckers waiting. "Sup, Max?"

"Not much," the boy said. "Just got asked if we sold fire extinguishers."

"The hell?"

"I know, right?"

For the next thirty minutes, she answered mundane calls and played Robot Unicorn Attack. This was definitely the best part of the job.

Until Colby started calling.

"Uh oh…Max, can you grab that one? It's Colby."

"Sure," he said without hesitation. He was the only one besides Cross who was taking her situation with Colby seriously. "Lima Book Nook, this is Max!"

Santana watched as the boy listened to the call.

"Yeah, she's in today, but she's in the store room all day. We got this big shipment of the new Kane Chronicles book, and they're trying to sort through all the pre-orders for the midnight release," he lied.

Santana mouthed "Thank you," and went to answer her own calls.

* * *

"Blizzle."

"No."

"Blainey?"

"No."

"I can't just call you 'B'. That's what we call Britt."

"Blaine works fine."

"Look, I'm trying to help you out here," Santana said, taking a bite of her salad. "If we don't figure out a nickname for you now, you'll earn one later. And Puck doesn't forget nicknames."

"Oh goodness."

"Think about it. We'll talk in the car." With that, she threw her empty sandwich wrapper away and made her way back to the music section. She loved it here. She got to pick out the music for that hour (starting with Amy Winehouse of course) and the customers usually asked her for advice. It was second best to running the phones. She found a stack of random CDs and put them back in their places, jamming to Valerie.

"Thought you were working in back today."

Santana sighed and turned around. "I was. I'm out here now. Do you need a CD?"

"How was your week?" Colby asked. "Must've been eventful, since you didn't have time to return my calls."

Santana gave him her best HBIC look while subtly scanning the store for Blaine. She spotted him hurrying over from the home and garden section, and made a mental note to tease him about that later. "Look, Colby, I'm in a relationship. And I'm happy. So this whole thing with you coming in every day—it has to stop." There. She'd shown restraint. And Blaine had witnessed it, so Quinn officially owed her twenty dollars for not punching Colby in the face.

"You can't tell me no—"

"I can. I'm totally serious right now. I'm also losing what little patience I have left."

Colby growled, but Blaine stepped in front of him.

"What's the problem?" the ex-Warbler said.

"None of your damn business."

"Leave her alone."

"What exactly are you going to do about it? Wait…you're Cooper Anderson's brother aren't you?"

Blaine looked around at the growing crowd. "So what?"

"The one who had to transfer to Dalton because he kept getting the shit beat out of him…. I remember. And you transferred to McKinley to be with Hummel. Hudson kind of drew the short straw on step-brothers."

"Shut up."

"Anyway, I'm talking to my lady, so why don't you scamper off to the craft section."

"She's not your lady, and you're not talking to her anymore."

"And again, what exactly are you going to do about it, fag?"

Santana pulled Blaine back by the wrists. She'd seen him sad before, or annoyed, or frustrated…but this was the first time she'd ever seen him thoroughly pissed off. And she had a feeling there was going to be a body count if she didn't end this now. Her homeboy was straight up terrifying at the moment. "That's it, Colby. You're banned. Get out before I call Cross over here."

"You can't—"

"Yes, I fucking can!" Santana snapped. She'd had it. She'd probably get lectured about cursing in front of customers, but it was worth it. "You come in here every day trying to intimidate me into dating you, and then you start bashing my friend? Fuck no. You notice how the only response you got when you called him a fag were some immature 'Ooohs' from the middle schoolers? That's because us real adults are better than that. And you may act like big shit, but every time you open your mouth, all anyone with a brain hears is 'I have a tiny dick'."

People actually applauded. Cross had made it there by now, and grabbed Colby by the shoulder.

"You're out of here, son. Let's go."

What happened next went so fast that later, Santana would swear that time had sped up.

Colby pulled away from Cross and backhanded Santana.

Blaine rugby tackled him and landed a solid right hook to his jaw.

"Everyone out!" Max yelled. He herded the crowd away as Blaine hauled Colby to his feet.

"Call the cops," Blaine snarled. He pushed the older boy to Cross and rushed over to Santana. "Be still, you're bleeding."

"Don't tell Puck I got my ass kicked."

* * *

"So…." Quinn said, smiling at Rachel.

"What?"

"You have yet to tell me about your date. You kept avoiding the subject in the car."

"I wasn't avoiding anything. You just kept tormenting me with your odd taste in music, and I had to save my ears. Had no idea you were a hipster, Fabray."

"Watch it, Berry."

Rachel grinned at her as they walked down the street from the museum. They'd been in seminars all morning and were starving. "Next time we do this, we need to plan better. Two o'clock is way too late for lunch."

"I agree. This place looks okay."

They popped into the small Italian restaurant and Quinn began pestering Rachel again about the date.

"She took me to Skylight. She said her dad takes her sometimes and she really likes it."

Quinn nodded. "What else?"

"It was great," Rachel breathed, a smile spreading across her face. "She was…gallant."

"Lord Jesus…here we go with the knight references again."

"What? She was! Opening doors, and pulling out my chair for me, and—"

"Okay, enough… I shouldn't have asked. I'm going to gag."

Rachel smiled.

Quinn's phone started playing Somewhere Only We Know. "It's Blaine. Hello?"

Something about Blaine calling Quinn made Rachel very nervous. She watched the blonde's eyes and knew something was wrong.

"Okay…no, Blaine. Are you fucking serious? How am I supposed—"

"What's wrong?" Rachel whispered.

"She's okay though? Okay. I will. Thanks, Blaine. See you tomorrow."

"What happened? Rachel asked as soon as Quinn hung up.

"First, you should know that Santana is perfectly fine."

"Quinn—"

"Colby showed up again today and…he kind of threw a temper tantrum. He hit her."

"WHAT?"

"Shh! Blaine dislocated the asshole's jaw, and Santana's okay. And they called the cops, so she's got a restraining order on him."

"She's okay?" Rachel repeated, trying not to panic.

"Three stitches, and fine otherwise. And she told me to tell you that you are not to cut this trip short to come back to Lima. She wants you to, and this is a direct quote, have some good, wholesome nerdy fun with me."

Rachel smiled. "I'm still going to call her."

"Oh, I figured."

* * *

"Jesus, Mary, Joseph, and every single fucking Apostle," Santana said, cracking a breadstick in half. "Is it douchebag day or something?"

"What's wrong?" Blaine asked.

"Turn around."

Finn was marching toward them.

"I am so not in the mood," she said when he reached their table.

"Calm down, Santana. I'm not here to yell at you. I heard Kurt telling Dad about what happened today, and I wanted to see if you two were alright."

"We're fine now," Blaine said. "Thanks."

Finn nodded. "Look, Santana, what's going on with you and Rachel? What's your plan here?"

"I plan to make her as happy as possible for as long as she'll let me," Santana answered seriously. She was too tired to snap at him, so she went with the truth. "That's it."

Finn stared at her for a moment. "Fine. Then I'll back off. I'm not that Colby guy, and I… I don't want either of you to worry about me the way you were worried about him. But if you hurt her…."

Santana nodded. "Noted."

He smiled at them. "Well, I better report back to Kurt. See you guys around."

"Did you and Finn just have a civil conversation?" Blaine asked, astounded.

"The world has gone mad, Warbz."

"Warbz?"

"Would you like me to revert back to Gay Warbler?"

"Warbz it is."

"Snix and Warbz make a pretty good duo," Santana quipped.


	9. Bro Night and Nicknames

**Knights Nerds Naps**

Sam had come along for bro night, which was a good thing since they decided to play Halo in teams.

"I'm telling you, Batman is a tool," Santana grumbled as she sliced up Puck's avatar with a plasma sword. "The fact that you're arguing that Spiderman is a whiny pussy without mentioning Batman's mommy/daddy drama is incredible."

"Batman's parents are his motivation," Sam argued, running from Blaine onscreen. "Spiderman snivels over every little thing, and he only started fighting crime out of guilt."

"Not true!" Blaine said, accidently shooting Santana while trying to hit Sam. "He wanted to make sure it didn't happen to anyone else—that no other families were ripped apart. He's just like Batman in that respect, but the difference is he's not a psychopath."

"Preach, Warbz," Santana said.

"A psychopath?" Puck asked. "Where are you getting that?"

"He doesn't know when enough is enough. And he's kind of abusive to Robin in the comics."

"You're crazy."

Santana's phone buzzed before she could back Blaine up. "Uh…I'm going to take this," she said, pausing the game.

"Whipped!" Puck fake-coughed.

She kicked him in the shins. "Hey Rach. Having a good time with Q?"

The boys all started making kissing noises, so she went into the hall.

"It's been awesome, but I'm calling to talk about you. What's this about you joining the Dalton Warblers' Fight Club?"

"IS THAT WHAT QUINN TOLD YOU?" Santana yelped. Then she heard laughter in the background on Rachel's end. "She totally put you up to that, right?"

"Yeah," Rachel said. "Really though, how are you feeling?"

"Fine. Blaine took great care of me. You don't have to worry."

"Okay. I'm still coming over to take care of you tomorrow."

"Does that mean we get to play doctor? I do still have the candy stripper outfit." Santana said, using her "You know you want me" voice. She smirked when she heard a squeak from Rachel.

"I…uh…"

Santana laughed.

"S, what exactly did you say to her?" Quinn said, getting on the phone. "She just turned red as a fire hydrant and is staring off into space."

"Quinn, give me my phone back! I'm perfectly fine!" came Rachel's voice.

"You two had better not be having phone sex while I'm here," Quinn grumbled.

"Well could you go wander around your hotel for a bit?" Santana asked, grinning. "All I need is thirty minutes."

"SANTANA!"

She laughed. Tormenting Quinn was one of life's greatest pleasures. "Put my girlfriend back on the phone, Blondie."

"We are not having phone sex, so don't even think about it," Rachel said.

"Well I get you all to myself tomorrow, so I suppose I can wait."

"Goodnight, Santana…."

"Night Rach!"

Santana smiled as she hung up and walked back into Blaine's "Man Cave". The boys were currently arguing over a movie to watch.

"Santana, Iron Man or Green Lantern?"

"Green Lantern, Trouty Mouth."

"How come Blaine gets a new nickname and I don't?" the blonde whined.

"He didn't have one to begin with, that's why."

"How's Rachel?" Puck asked. "Panicking over you?"

"No, she was just calling to check in. Q put her up to asking if I'd joined the Dalton Fight Club…."

"First rule of Fight Club…no breaking out into song, since most of you are Warblers," Blaine said, laughing.

"Speaking of Rachel," Sam said. "Mercedes has been bugging me to ask you if we can go on a double date with you guys. I think she's still trying to wrap her head around it, and my fine chocolate goddess gets a headache when she doesn't have full details."

"I'll agree, if you promise to never call Wheezy that again…."

* * *

Santana went to her parents' house the next day. It was time to have a think. She was spinning—that much was clear. She sat on the couch, turned the TV on, set it to a jazz station, and thought about everything from the past few months.

She had a girlfriend. One she cared about, and it wasn't just a rebound from Brittany. And she was actually terrified of the coming year because she knew her awesome girlfriend would be leaving.

Said girlfriend had awesome parents who actually gave a shit about her. And who had more or less offered her a home.

She had Blaine. Weird as that was. And Blaine was serious about protecting her from her stalker.

She had a stalker. One who was still sending her threatening text messages. One more reason to hate Verizon—they were dragging their asses on getting her number changed.

This had been one fucking insane summer. "Can't imagine how this year's going to go."

The doorbell rang. For a second, she was worried it was Colby. But when she looked out of the living room window, she saw Quinn waving from her car. She smiled, going to open the door. "Hey there!"

"Santana!" Rachel yelped, throwing herself into the older girl's arms.

"I just saw you yesterday," Santana chuckled.

"But you weren't grievously injured at that point," Rachel pointed out. She turned around and waved to Quinn.

The blonde honked once and drove off with a wave.

"I'm still not. See?" Santana pushed her hair back as she and Rachel walked into the living room and sat on the couch. She turned so Rachel could see the cut. "Totes fine."

Rachel kissed her. "I got you something."

"What?"

Rachel opened her bag and took out a teddy bear. It had a tweed coat and a red bow tie. "Number Eleven," she said.

Santana's mouth dropped open as she took the bear. "You. Are. Perfect," she told Rachel.

"I've worked hard to become so."

Santana grinned and pulled Rachel on top of her. "I missed you."

"I missed you too."

"I also agreed to go on a double date with Guppy Lips and Wheezy."

"Wait…what? Sam and Mercedes are dating?"

"Yup."

"Oh goodness."

"Stay over here tonight," Santana said. "We'll watch cheesy horror movies and cuddle."

"Cuddle monster."

"Am not."

They stayed that way for a while, just holding each other and listening to the music Santana had on. Finally, Rachel propped herself up on her elbow and looked at the other girl. "Tana?"

"Tana?"

"Shortened version of Santana."

"Yeah, I got that, but why?"

"Because I don't have a pet name for you."

"Uh…"

"Could go with Ana. Or Santi."

"No."

"Sanny?"

"Now I know how Blaine felt."

"We could go with something other than your name…. Cupcake?"

"The fuck—"

"Cookie? Muffin? Pookie?"

"Rachel—"

"How about…_caballero_?"

Santana shut her mouth. Even though she'd only said one word in Spanish, Santana was still having to resist the urge to take Rachel right there on the couch.

"Is that acceptable?"

"Say it again."

"_Caballero_. Spanish for 'knight', I believe."

Santana just nodded. "How…how much Spanish do you know?"

"A fair bit."

"Okay…."

"Something you'd like to tell me?" Rachel asked with an evil smirk.

"You're only allowed to call me that when we're alone, got it?"

"Got it."


	10. Conversations

**Knights Nerds Naps**

"Hello?"

"Santana?"

"Mami!" Santana yelped. She was glad she was alone at the moment, because absolutely no one was allowed to know that she turned into a squealing two-year-old at the sound of her mother's voice. "Where are you guys?"

"Lisbon. I got your message. I'm sorry I couldn't call sooner. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. Blaine and Rachel took care of me."

"Aww…I'm glad you have such sweet friends. We're having them over for dinner when we get back. No arguments," she said when Santana tried to protest. "I want to meet your bodyguard, and as a parent I have to embarrass you in front of your girlfriend at least once."

Santana sputtered.

"Please, Santana, did you really think I didn't know?" her mom said, chuckling. "We don't talk much, but when we do I'm pretty sure 75 percent of our conversation centers around your plans with Rachel. But I have to go. Your father says hello. Oh, and he wants you to know that he's bringing you a snowglobe."

Santana chuckled. "Thanks. Bye, Mami."

"Bye baby."

Santana hit the "end call" button and tried not to cry. She missed her parents, no matter how brave a face she put on. She glanced at the time…it was only two o'clock. Another four hours until Dads Berry came home. She had a weird urge to hug a parent. Any parent would work. "I'm fucking pathetic." Sighing, she made her way down the hall to Rachel's room. She smiled as she pushed the door open. The diva had had a morning shift from hell and fallen into bed as soon as she'd come home. Santana climbed in and snuggled her from behind. She dropped a kiss to the girl's shoulder and closed her eyes.

* * *

**The next day**

Santana was taking the last bite of her salad when a small wrapped box was placed in front of her. She looked up to see Finn taking a seat across from her. "Finnocence?"

"I'm demanding a new nickname," he said, smirking. "Sam said you gave Blaine one."

"That's because Blaine didn't have one to begin with. What's with the box?"

"It's my way of calling a truce. Open it," he said, giving her his big goofy grin. Normally, it infuriated her, but today he reminded her of a puppy. It was probably because he was soaking wet from the rain.

"It better not be anything gross…."

It was an iPhone.

"I paid off the first month, after that you're on your own," Finn said. "It's just…. Look, I know I do dumb stuff. And no one ever really calls me on it. Everyone just kind of moves on. And I like it that way, because I don't have to deal with the awkward apologies that I'm no good at. But this is different." He paused and played with one of the napkins on the table. "I gave him your number because I wanted you to back off of Rachel, so it's kind of my fault that he's texting you constantly."

"To be fair, it's mostly Verizon's fault now," Santana said. "Thanks though. This was really nice of you. I hope you didn't drain your lemonade stand money buying this."

"Nah…Just went with the fanciest plan."

"Oh god…"

"I've got to go buy groceries. Burt's making fajitas tonight."

"Coming to Mike's party this weekend?"

"Of course. I'll see you guys there."

* * *

**Quinn: **You there?

**Rachel: **Good afternoon, Quinn! Even though our days are usually frought with stress, I must say that I missed seeing you.

**Quinn: **Aww…I feel special! Anyway, I need your advice.

**Rachel: **I'll do my best to help.

**Quinn: **If your parents surprised you with a hundred dollar special edition of a book you like, for no fucking reason, what would you think?

**Rachel: **As much as I loathe being cynical, I must admit that I would assume they were prepping me for some bad news. Either that or bribing me.

**Quinn: **I'm glad you're thinking what I'm thinking.

**Rachel: **Which book?

**Quinn: **Machiavelli's _The Prince_.

**Rachel: **!

**Quinn: **I know. I'm drooling.

**Rachel: **I could make a joke about the choice of book….

**Quinn: **How it's perfect for me? :)

**Rachel: **Your words, not mine.

**Quinn: **I haven't touched it yet. I have a feeling it's blood money.

**Rachel: **Not to cut our conversation short, but I have to go. My dads are calling me. Please text me when you ascertain your mother's motivations. I'm intrigued.

**Quinn: **I'm going to assume that was Rachel!speak for "Call me when you figure it out".

**Rachel: **Yes, Quinn.

**Quinn: **Got it.

Rachel signed off and walked downstairs. "Daddy?"

"We're in here, sweetie."

Walking into the living room, Rachel immediately began to panic. Her dads were sitting really close on the couch and one of the armchairs was facing them. It was the family meeting setup. "Is everything okay?"

"Perfectly fine," Hiram said, a bit too quickly.

"You're freaking her out, honey," Leroy said. "We just want to talk to you for a moment. Have a seat."

Rachel sat down and smoothed her skirt out. Everyone was silent for a while, listening to the rain outside. Finally, it was too much for Rachel. "What is it?"

"We just…thought we should have a talk about…things," Leroy said.

"We understand you and Santana are becoming closer, and we wanted to…check on things."

Rachel made the horrible realization too late to save herself.

"You're maturing into a young lady, and I'm sure you're going to start to have…urges."

"Oh sweet Barbara."

"And we know that it might be tempting to act on those urges."

"Barbara, Oprah, and Celine, someone help me…."

"We just want you to know that we trust you enough to be safe and make wise decisions."

"And we want to make sure that you know to talk things over with Santana before things…start to get intimate."

"Of course, we would be much happier if you waited until you were married. But Santana's a very pretty girl, and we know you two have some sort of special bond. We are officially installing an open-door policy while she's here, however."

"Santana's…we're not…oh god."

"Anyway…we're sure you have things to do…."

"Yes," Rachel squeaked. Then, thinking she should at least give the allusion of maturity, she added, "Uh…thank you. For checking on me. I appreciate it." She bolted from the room then, pretty sure that she was the first teen in the history of anything to actually thank her parents for The Talk. She retreated to her room and got back on her laptop. She saw she had a message from Quinn.

**Quinn: **God almighty…she was trying to bribe me to go out with a boy from church. She's worried that Santana's having a gay influence on me. Actually, her exact words were, "Quinnie, I'm worried that you're giving up on boys because you're looking at Santana's relationship. I know she's happy, but maybe you shouldn't write off all men yet?" I had to explain the concept of Quinndependence to her.

Rachel smiled and typed out her reply.

**Rachel: **I can top it. My dads are worried that Santana's after my virtue. They just gave me The Talk.

Her phone buzzed. It was from Santana.

_Get over here, woman!_

**Santana, you are not a cavewoman. That request was unacceptable.  
**

_It's raining!_

**Yes, dear, it is.**

_I want to take a nap. I need you here._

**You need me there for a nap?**

_Don't make me beg…._

**I don't see why you need me for a nap….**

**Santana?**

_I, Santana Maribel Lopez, am a helpless cuddle monster. I hereby request the presence of my girlfriend, one Rachel Barbara Berry, to assist me in an epic rainy day nap. _

**Not sure if it's the way you asked, the fact that I finally got you to admit your snuggle dependency, or the fact that I can actually see you scowling at your phone…. Either way, I'm coming over.**

_Delete that text before you go._

**Hell no. That's jewel's going straight to Quinn if you ever piss me off.**

_You play dirty, Berry._

**You love me.**

_Damn straight._


	11. Mike's Birthday Party

_**LbN: Sorry about the wait! Two chapters for the price of one this time. :) When R & B sing, Blaine is in bold, Rachel is in italics, and when both are singing it's both. Happy reading!**_

* * *

"Moving out so soon?" Hiram asked as the girls walked downstairs.

"Unfortunately," Santana said, setting one of her bags by the door. "My parents are coming back tomorrow, but we have Mike Chang's party tonight. We're doing a movie night at my place after that with Britt and Quinn, so I figured it would be easier to dump my stuff before I drag Rachel shopping."

"Shopping?"

"For swimsuits."

"Godspeed, brave warrior…."

Santana laughed as Rachel descended the stairs, scowling at her father.

"I'm not that much of a tyrant," the diva said.

Hiram held up his hands in surrender, winked at Santana, and called Leroy. "Honey! Santana's leaving!"

"So soon?"

"Leroy, I've been mooching off you guys half the summer," Santana said, smirking. "My parents get in tomorrow."

"Well, know that you're welcome back any time you want," Leroy said.

"Thanks. Come on, munchkin. We've got shopping to do."

"Have fun, girls!"

"Thanks Daddy!" Rachel said. She made to follow Santana out, but stopped. "Oh! Is it okay if I just stay over at Santana's tonight?"

"I guess that's okay," Hiram said. "No drugs, no alcohol, no ritual animal sacrifices of any kind…."

Santana laughed as Rachel rolled her eyes and pulled her out the door.

* * *

"No."

"Princess."

"It's far too revealing!"

"That's what you said about the last seven!"

"Because it's true."

"You just don't want to go in a swimsuit. I'm not letting you rock board shorts and a t-shirt this time, baby."

"You just want to ogle my body, for some odd reason."

Santana quirked an eyebrow and sat down on the dressing room bench. She pulled Rachel gently into her lap. "Years of having Q psychoanalyze me has given me a knack for latching onto hidden meanings. What do you mean 'for some odd reason'? You're beautiful—why wouldn't I unrepentantly stare at you?"

"While I realize that you and Puckerman find me aesthetically pleasing—"

"Remind me to kill him…"

"I'm harboring no delusions that the rest of anyone agrees. Hush," she said, seeing Santana about to interrupt. "It's not just gleeks at this party. Mike's friends with Cheerios, because they go to his dance school, and kids from other schools too. I just don't want our less evolved classmates to have a reason to make me the entertainment of the evening."

Santana huffed. "That shit's going to stop for good this year…. You know that, right?"

"I have no doubts about your protective instincts, Santana. Just find me something tasteful that won't have the Cheerios making fun of my lack of abs."

Santana picked up all of the discarded swimsuits and kissed Rachel. "Two minutes. I'll be back."

In the end, Rachel decided on a black two-piece. It was cute, and suited her body shape, and it was a tank so she felt properly covered. She laughed as Santana grumbled about "not getting to ogle properly".

"Just think of it this way," she said as they walked to the front of the mall. "No one else will be perving on my body either."

"Silver linings, I suppose. Hey, can I talk to you about something?" she asked as they made their way to the car.

"Of course! What's up?"

"My mom…kind of wants to meet you. She wants you to come to dinner on Sunday."

"Oh! Well, I'm sure that will be fine. Anything you'd like to warn me about before I get there?"

"Dad's a history buff, so brush up on your knowledge of…everything, if you want to make an impression."

"Got it."

"Mom's just really taken with you already. Apparently she remembers you from freshmen orientation."

Rachel was quiet as she got into the car. She gasped and looked over at Santana as the cheerleader backed out of the parking space. "She was the one who helped me after that idiot smacked me in the face opening his locker!"

"She says you were just so polite the whole time," Santana said, grinning. "Anyway, it's no big deal. You get to meet the elusive Lopez parents, and then we can cuddle and watch movies."

"Sounds like a plan."

* * *

"Hello, girls!" Mr. Chang said brightly. "Everyone's out back."

"Your home is gorgeous, sir," Rachel said, looking around.

"Thank you! You must be Rachel."

"Er…yes."

"Mike told me how to identify everyone on his guest list. Last time he had a party like this, some…uh…unsavory characters showed up. Anyway, the note next to 'Rachel Berry' reads 'Will either compliment you or babble incessantly'. You're the only compliment I've gotten all night, so…." He smiled and shrugged.

The girls laughed.

"Rachel! Santana!" Mike said, coming in through the back door. "Great, you guys made it!"

"Sorry we're late," Santana said. "This one had to change her outfit 76 times."

"It's cool," he said, laughing. "We're all in the pool. Dad, when do you want me to wrangle everyone for cake?"

"Give it another hour or so."

Santana and Rachel followed Mike out to the back lawn. Rachel, who'd never been there before, looked on in total shock. The yard was huge—probably half to three-quarters the size of a football field, with a large pool in the center.

"Drinks and sandwiches are over on the patio," Mike said. "Most of the Gleeks are congregating by the karaoke machine, but a bunch of people are swimming too. Mom made virgin strawberry daiquiris and piña coladas—she's guarding them though, after Puck tried to spike them. Have fun!"

With a smile at Santana, Rachel made her way across the yard past the people playing Frisbee and over to the karaoke machine. "Hey guys!"

"Hey Rach!" Blaine called from the stage. "Come help me out?"

"Leave it to Mike's parents to build a stage for his party," Tina said, sipping her drink.

"Well it is their pride and joy's 18th," Santana said. "At least they didn't get a smoke machine for when they roll the cake out like at his 13th."

"No…they just borrowed Sue's confetti cannon," Quinn said, running over from the pool.

"Ay…dios mio…."

"Come on, S, let's go swim."

Santana nodded toward the pool and got a smile from Rachel. "Race you, Q!"

"Come on, Warbz!" Sam called. "Either sing, or let me up there."

"Wait your turn, Trouty Mouth."

"Oh god, Santana's had a bad influence on you," Rachel said. "Oooh! Let's do this one." She grinned as the music started.

**We didn't care if people stared  
We'd make out in a crowd somewhere  
Somebody'd tell us to get a room  
It's hard to believe that was me and you  
Now we keep saying that we're OK  
But I don't want to settle for good not great  
I miss the way that it felt back then I wanna feel that way again**

**Been so long that you'd forget the way I used to kiss your neck**

_Remind me, remind me  
_** So on fire so in love. Way back when we couldn't get enough**  
_Remind me, remind me_

_Remember the airport dropping me off  
We were kissing goodbye and we couldn't stop  
_**I felt bad cause you missed your flight**  
_**But that meant we had one more night**_

_Do you remember how it used to be  
We'd turn out the lights and we didn't just sleep_  
**Remind me, baby, remind me  
**_Oh, so on fire so in love  
That look in your eyes that I miss so much_  
**Remind me, baby, remind me**

**I wanna feel that way  
**_Yeah, I wanna hold you close_  
_**Oh, if you still love me  
Don't just assume I know  
**_  
_Baby, remind me, remind me_

_Do you remember the way it felt?_  
**You mean back when we couldn't control ourselves**  
_Remind me  
_**Yeah, remind me**  
_All those things that you used to do  
That made me fall in love with you_  
_**Remind me, oh, baby, remind me  
**_  
**Yeah, you'd wake up in my old t-shirt  
All those mornings I was late for work  
**_Remind me  
Oh, baby, remind me  
_  
_**Oh, baby, remind me, baby, remind me  
Yeah, you'd wake up in my old t-shirt  
Oh, yeah, remind me  
Baby, remind me **_

A ton of people clapped at their performance. Rachel passed the microphone off to Mercedes and jumped down off the stage. "I'm going to get a drink. You want anything, Blaine?"

"Just a water. Thanks."

She walked back to the patio and picked up two water bottles.

"Holy. Shit."

She spun around to see two Cheerios staring at her. "Uh…it's Carlie and Jess, right?"

"We thought people were pulling our legs when they said you and Lopez were an item. Holy fucking shit."

"As amusing as I find your shock and horror," Rachel said dryly. "I'd like to get back to the party."

"Time out, Berry," Carlie said, sniggering. "We're just…a little confused. We honestly thought last semester was a sympathy thing, but…we saw you come in with her. Holding hands. What the actual fuck?"

Rachel hesitated. They hadn't actually talked about coming out. It wasn't exactly a secret, but still….

"Lord Jesus, as long as Lopez isn't fucking you, I can ignore it. I really don't want your brand of crazy rubbing off on her."

"I resent that," Rachel snapped. "For various reasons, but near the top of the list is the fact that I'm not crazy."

"And I'm not a Cheerio," Jess said. "Don't think this changes anything. We're still slushieing the shit out of you every chance we get."

"Why?" Rachel bit back. "Mike's in glee too, and you're here at his party. You can't hate us that much."

"Mike may be in glee, but he's not an overbearing, pretentious, self-absorbed loser like you and Hummel. No matter how much charity work Lopez put in over the summer, I don't think even she could fix that."

Rachel's mouth fell open at this, but before she could gather a suitable response, Mike called them all together for cake. She hung at the back of the crowd, willing herself not to cry.

An arm wrapped around her shoulders.

"What happened?" Santana asked. "I saw you talking to them, but Azimio tossed me back into the pool when I was trying to get out."

"It's nothing. They just…asked about us."

"What else?"

"Please, Santana…I don't want to ruin Mike's party by crying. Can we do this later?"

"Sure." She pulled Rachel into a hug and winked at Quinn over the shorter girl's shoulder.

Quinn just smiled.

* * *

Rachel managed to make it home without breaking down. She'd been relieved that the rest of the girls (except Quinn) had taken a rain check on the sleepover. She really wanted to be alone with Santana for now.

"Where did you say Quinn went?" Rachel asked.

"She had an errand to run, but she'll be here. You want to talk about earlier?"

"Not really," Rachel said, cuddling into Santana's side.

Santana sighed and smiled.

"Not the reaction I was expecting," Rachel admitted.

"Don't worry, Princess. You don't have to talk if you don't want to. I'd much rather hear it from you than through the grapevine, though."

"They were just…being assholes about us. No big deal."

Santana leaned over and kissed her. Then she grumbled, hearing her phone ring. "It's Q," she told Rachel. "Hello?"

"Put your girlfriend on the phone, Santana."

"Oh shit, you've got your psycho-Quinn voice on," Santana said, passing the phone to Rachel. "She wants to talk to you."

"Hello, Quinn. What can I do for you?"

"You can listen for a second. Going to tell you something, so zip it for a few minutes, okay?"

"Okay," Rachel said nervously. She knew that voice. That voice, on anyone else, would have been charming, cheery—possibly discussing puppies or a sunny picnic in the park. That voice on Quinn? It meant death.

"You've got two options here. One is that you tell Santana what these bitches said to upset you, and I'll deal with them now. Two is that you hand the phone back to Santana, I tell her, and then she comes and deals with them _with_ me. Either way, she's getting information, and I get an outlet for my extremely repressed sadism."

"Is that them crying in the background?" Rachel yelped.

"Don't worry about that. And in the immortal words of Sue Sylvester, I have a lawyer and an alibi."

"I do not condone violence Lucy Quinn Fabray."

"Oh I know. I never said I was going to physically harm them…. So what's it going to be, Berry? And you should know that if Santana comes over here, Jesus himself is going to have to come down off the cross to save them."

"I'll tell her!" Rachel said, and quickly reported the story to Santana.

The older girl just smirked. "Figured it was something like that. Can I talk to her?"

"Please don't kill them, Quinn," Rachel said seriously, before handing the phone to Santana.

"You got it, Q? Right…See you in fifteen then."

"Oh god, she's going to kill them, isn't she?" Rachel asked when Santana hung up.

"Nah…but they won't bother you again. And that shit they said—"

"I know…" Rachel said, smiling slightly.

Fifteen minutes later, Quinn strolled into the living room whistling merrily. Rachel was slightly relieved to see that the blonde wasn't covered in blood.

Slightly.

* * *

_**LbN: Hope you liked it! I'm leaving the Glee poll up for a couple more days, for those of you who haven't voted. Also, I'm officially taking requests for the Gleeks' Halloween costumes :). I've already got an idea for Santana, Britt, Quinn and Rachel, but I'm still open to suggestions. **_


	12. Checkmate

**_LbN_: **_**Thank you so much to everyone who's been reading/reviewing/etc.! It is the fifth most read and third most reviewed out of all of my stories. I'm glad you guys are enjoying it so much!**_

_**Also, for some reason, around chapters three and five, I decided that Santana was younger than Rachel. Count that as a blooper. Santana's older in this verse.**_

* * *

"It's weird."

"It's sweet," Maribel Lopez said, as she and Santana gazed into the living room. "He's finally met his match."

They watched as Rachel and Santana's father, Cristobal, played a particularly intense game of chess. Every move, one of them would ask a history question and the other would answer. Every five moves, Cristobal would turn the board, so that they were playing the opposite color. It was lightning fast, and, in Santana's humble opinion, terrifying.

"Death of Anne Boleyn?"

"May 19th, 1536, Tower of London," Rachel answered automatically. "And you should stay away from Tudor history if you want to stump me. I'm a King Henry the 8th fangirl."

"Noted," Cristobal said, switching the board.

"Date construction of the Eiffel Tower started?"

"January 28th, 1887. Dates of the Second Congo War?"

"Also known as the Great Africa War. Started in August of 1998 in the Democratic Republic of Congo—formerly known as Zaire—and ended in July of 2003."

"We should go get dinner started," Maribel said, chuckling. "They're going to be at it for a while."

* * *

To Rachel, it wasn't a question of _if_ she won over Santana's parents, but how long it would take. By the end of the chess game, she was pretty sure she'd charmed both of them.

And by "pretty sure", she meant "positive".

"So, Rachel…Santana tells me you're off to New York at the end of this year," Maribel said.

"Hopefully. I'm applying to Julliard and NYADA, as well as some arts programs at other schools."

"Impressive."

"She's trying to talk me into Columbia," Santana said.

"You should listen."

"I always listen to my Rachel," Santana said, smirking as Rachel blushed. "But I don't look good in Columbia's colors."

"Oh for heaven's sake, Santana…" her mom said, laughing.

Dinner passed peacefully, and as Rachel helped Santana clear the table, she noticed the older girl's parents putting on their coats.

"We'll be back later, girls," Cristobal said. "Have fun. Don't stay up too late."

"Where are they going?" Rachel asked after they'd left.

Santana shrugged. "Some office party or another. They have them all the time. Always good to mingle with people who are important."

"Wait so…they're just out of here?"

"You got a game with Dad and dinner with Mom. That's all we get for free," Santana said, smiling.

"Oh."

Santana kissed her and took her hand. "Come on—I wants to gets my cuddles on."

They wandered upstairs to Santana's room and turned on the TV.

"What are we watching?" Rachel asked.

"Prince of Egypt."

"AGAIN?"

"Either that or Saw, munchkin. Take your pick."

"You're evil."

"You're dating me."

"True…I suppose I'll have to move on to more morally upstanding candidates."

"Like hell. You're stuck with me, Princess."

"Is this the part where you take out my collar and leash?"

"Please stop talking before my mind goes to its X-rated happy place."

Rachel giggled as Santana crawled over the bed to snuggle in next to her. "_Caballero_?"

"Yeah?"

"We should talk about school."

Santana sighed. "Yeah…I guess we should. I guess I have to talk you out of your nonviolence stance at some point."

"What? Why?"

"Because I'm totes going to kill the first motherfucker who messes with you."

"No, you're not. I don't want you getting into trouble on the first day of school."

"You think it's going to be that big a deal?"

"Best case scenario, I endure a few slushies on day one, then everyone figures out we're actually together and eases up. More than likely, though, everyone will have the same reactions as Jess and Carlie."

"That's two sound theories in one day—neither of which deal with abnormally sized men. Kind of makes me feel like river dancing."

"What?"

"Nothing."

"Anyway…I know it's going to be a difficult first few weeks, and I just wanted to make sure we were on the same page about…this," she said, motioning to the two of them. "We never really talked about coming out."

"Don't worry, Rachel. It might be weird the first day, but I'll make sure any idiot who's got a problem with us answers to Snix." She kissed her cheek as Rachel laughed. "As for the coming out thing, I honestly hadn't thought about it. We haven't exactly been…."

"Discreet?"

"Yeah, that. I mean, Kurt and Mercedes know, so I fully expect the entire school to know by the second day."

"Fair point."

"Anyway, I'm totally cool with us walking down the hall holding hands with you wearing my letterman jacket. Well, actually that'll have to wait until later in the year—I don't want you dying of heat stroke."

"Aww, Santana," Rachel said, smirking. "You're warm fuzzy side is showing."

"Wanky."

"And, she's back."

Santana laughed.

"Seriously though," Rachel said. "You'd do all that for me?"

"Please, Princess…. I'd walk barefoot across hell just to punch Satan in the nuts if you wanted. Plus Quinn already knows I'm whipped, so why shouldn't I show off what an awesome girlfriend I am?"

"Can't argue with that logic."

"What, that I'm a badass girlfriend?"

"No, that you're whipped." She scrambled off the bed before Santana could start tickling her.

* * *

"Yo Santana!"

"Hey Becky."

"Coach wants to see you in her office."

"Sure thing. I'll be right there." Santana sighed and hoped she didn't pass out from exhaustion right there in the locker room.

"Guess it was a mistake to think Sylvester would ease us back into things…." Quinn muttered, taping a bag of ice to her leg.

"I don't think 'Sylvester' and 'ease' have ever been in the same sentence until just now," Santana said. "Wait for me?"

"Sure. I've got to talk to Brittany anyway. She was saying something about getting a leprechaun in the mail today…."

"Yeah, I haven't figured it out yet either." Santana grabbed her bag and hurried out of the locker room. She knocked before entering Sylvester's office, even though the door was open. "Wanted to see me, Coach?"

"Lopez, have a seat," Sue said. She was currently scooping copious amounts of a chunky white powder into a blender. "I hear you snagged yourself a diva over the summer."

"That's right. Er…Coach, what is that?" she asked as Sue poured milk and some sort of green goo into the blender.

"This, Santana, is Coach Sylvester's Miracle Smoothie. I'm hoping to have it patented as soon as a few pesky human testing charges are dropped."

"Right."

"Anyway, your Sapphic love connection happens to come at a most opportune time. Figgins is on some silly sharing kick, which means organizations had to team up this year for fundraising. I picked New Directions because 1) I can't stand to look at any of the other losers who call themselves coaches, but I've grown accustomed to Schuester's magical hair, and 2) Porcelain and Aretha were, I admit, great contributions to the Cheerios. Plus there's so much overlap anyway that it just made sense." She added a handful of blueberries to the concoction and walked over to grab the orange juice from her mini-fridge.

"Cool," Santana said, nodding. She was waiting for the punch.

"The problem is that your vest-loving, wannabe boy band member director doesn't trust me. Therefore, I thought it would be a good idea to have one of his Chosen Ones come up with some ideas and presents them to both of us. Which is where your woman comes in."

"And what's in it for Rachel?"

"Let it never be said that you lost an ounce of your conniving ways," Sue said, starting the blender. "To answer your question, she will receive the protection of one Sue Sylvester."

"I'll talk to her about it."

"Get me an answer by tomorrow. Dismissed," Sue said, taking a swig of her smoothie straight from the blender.

* * *

_**First one who can tell me the movie Santana quotes in this chapter gets a special bonus chapter. Just make sure you have private messaging enabled so I can reply to your review. :)**_


	13. First Day of School

_**LbN: Chapter dedicated to WillowFan and Hope2Smith. :)**_

Santana walked downstairs and into the kitchen. "I smell meat." An entire two months of going semi-vegan with Rachel had heightened her senses to any food that had once been an animal.

"Making your favorite," her dad said. "Waffles with barbacoa."

"You're awesome," she said as he passed a plate to her.

"First day of school breakfast—got to keep the tradition alive. And here's your gift."

First day of school gifts had, in Santana's mind, started off as guilt presents. Apologies for the fact that the rest of the year would almost certainly be missed. But after a few years, her parents had actually started putting thought into the gifts, and Santana found she actually looked forward to this brief period of interaction with them. "Should I wait to open it until Mami gets here?"

"She already left for work," he told her. "Someone's suing the hell out of their former spouse and keeps weird hours, so she had to go in early. She told me to wish you luck on your first day as a senior."

"Gotcha." Santana unwrapped the small box and found herself looking at a really fancy pen.

"It's one of the ones that records the lecture," her dad explained.

"Cool! Thanks, Papi."

"Don't mention it. Now, I have to run. Have a good day. Oh, and we got Rachel a First Day present as well."

Santana laughed. "One game of chess and she's got you guys wrapped around her finger."

"Look who's talking." He kissed her on the forehead. "Have a good day."

"You too."

She finished her breakfast quickly after he left, put her new pen in her bag, and grabbed Rachel's gift off the counter. Humming to herself, she walked out to her car and dialed Rachel. "Hey, I'm on my way."

"I'm on speaker right?" Rachel asked.

"Haven't started driving yet, Princess. Don't worry, I'm not putting my life in any mortal peril."

"Good. And I'll be ready by the time you get here. I think."

"Sure…."

* * *

"There she is! We were thinking you were never coming back," Leroy said as Santana walked in.

"Wouldn't be the first person we've scared off," Hiram said, chuckling. "Have you had breakfast, Santana?"

"Yeah. My dad made waffles. Oh, speaking of my dad, here you go Rachel."

"What's this?"

"First day of school present."

It was an portable chess game. "The card says, 'Last time was a fluke. I'll win the next one.'" She laughed and put it in her backpack.

"You two better get going," Hiram said, looking at the clock. "It's getting late."

"See you later, Berry men!" Santana said, taking Rachel's hand.

"Bye, Dads!"

Once they were on the road, Santana said, "There's something else…check my bag."

Rachel unzipped the duffle bag and found a hoodie with her name on it. "A Cheerios hoodie? Sylvester's not planning on me joining the team, is she?"

"Nah…I talked her into it. See most people are afraid of the Cheerios, sure, but it's less because of us and more because they don't want to incur the wrath of Sue if they get anything on our uniforms."

"But the hockey guys slushied Quinn and Finn last year."

"Yeah, and you notice how they all mysteriously came down with a case of H1N1?"

"Oh."

"Anyway, it's just a little extra protection in case a few idiots didn't get Quinn's memo."

"Memo?" Rachel asked nervously.

"She may have gone all HBIC last night and warned a few of the more…pigheaded sports teams not to mess with you."

"Sweet Barbara," Rachel mumbled. "Are you two ever going to tell me—"

"Nope."

Rachel pouted. She'd been trying to figure out what Quinn had done to make those two cheerleaders downright apologetic after Mike's party. "Please?"

"Nope."

"Santana."

"Nope."

"Fine."

Santana smiled over at her briefly, before turning her eyes back to the road. "I promise, it wasn't anything violent. Or anything that would get her sent to jail. Still, it's better if you don't know."

Rachel just shook her head. "Well, here we go," she said quietly as they pulled into the parking lot.

"You okay?"

"Fine. Just trying to prepare myself for the worst. Our blissful summer of being on our own and doing what we wanted is officially about to end."

"Hey, everything's going to be fine," Santana said. "Come on, let's get inside."

* * *

So much for "fine", Rachel thought as she backed away from a few hockey players. At that particular moment, she was ready to give up the whole "nonviolent" thing. "What is with you idiots and slushies?" she yelled as they advanced on her.

"What's life without a little Gleek bashing?" Rick the Stick said. "Hope you like orange-coconut."

Rachel closed her eyes, but opened them again a second later when she heard a yell. She jumped to the side as Karofsky slammed a slushie-covered Rick into the lockers next to her.

"Listen, puckhead," Karofsky said. "You come near Berry again and I will personally deliver a full-on ass kicking to you in front of the entire school. You got me?"

"Fuck off, fag!"

Karofsky punched him in the gut, but let go. He nodded once to Rachel before walking toward the cafeteria.

Rachel had to admit that watching Rick fall into a puddle of orange ice was quite satisfying. Still, she didn't want to be around when he got up. She made her way to her economics class, passing Coach Beiste.

"Thank god they're getting rid of that machine," Beiste said.

"The slushie machine?"

"Yep. A month from now, it's gone. And good riddance."

Rachel stopped, thinking hard. A smile spread across her face, and she changed directions. She needed to talk to Coach Sylvester.

* * *

"Hey!"

Santana turned from where she was helping Karofsky clean a bit of orange from his shirt. "Hey Kurt."

"Sup, Hummel?"

Kurt gave Karofsky a suspicious look. "Why?"

"What do you mean?"

"Why'd you stop Rick from slushieing Rachel?"

Karofsky let out an annoyed sigh. "I know I've given you no reason to trust me, but this is getting ridiculous. I meant what I said over the summer—what I told you at least seven times. I'm sorry for the shit I put you through, and I want to make it up to you this year. Seeing as I was a dick to the whole glee club, I figured helping Berry out wouldn't be a bad start."

"It's cool, Kurt," Santana said. "I talked to him and Azimio this morning."

Kurt nodded. "Cool. In that case, I'm going to walk with you to class."

The two of them laughed and made their way to history.

* * *

"Let me get this straight, Gay Barbara," Sue said. "After years of torment at the hands of your peers, you actually want them to slushie you?"

"Not just me…all of us. Like…like a dunk tank at the carnival, but they're armed with Big Gulps instead of balls. There's also the possibility of separating people into groups and having a straight up war."

"And why on earth would this work?"

"A monetarily beneficent mix of nostalgia, sadism, and competitiveness. The slushie machine is getting removed, it'll be people's last chance to indulge."

Sue handed her a notepad and pen. "I'll make sure you're excused from this class, Tiny Diva—I know how much you like to plan. Have a full plan ready for me when I get back from tormenting the freshman gym class, and you can deliver it to Schue after school."

* * *

Besides having to lay down the law a few times, it hadn't been that bad of a day, Santana figured.

"Hey Lopez."

Spoke to fucking soon, she thought. "Why does everyone suddenly know me today?"'

"Heard there was a new couple around here. You're dating the Berry girl, right?"

"Yeah, and?"

"The rugby team just wants you to know that if you ever want to…straighten out…we're your guys."

"We have a rugby team?" was Santana's first response. Then she shook her head. "No. Fuck no. Get your creeper ass away from me."

"Hey," he said, grabbing her arm. Then he let go with a yelp.

Santana was confused for a second, until she saw that his other arm was behind him for some reason. She peeked around his very large frame and saw Rachel standing there. She laughed.

"If you ever," Rachel said, giving the boy's arm a smart tug. "Touch my girlfriend again, they will never find your body. Clear?"

"Crystal," he whimpered.

Rachel let go, and he slunk off, muttering curses at them. "Hey."

"Hey yourself," Santana said, wide-eyed. "What happened to—"

"That's for normal occasions. All bets were off when he grabbed you. What is it with this school's male population and talking with their hands?"

Santana shrugged and pulled her into a hug. "How was your day? Do I need to end anybody?"

"No endings required," Rachel said as they walked to glee. "I did figure out a plan for our fundraiser. Quinn and I just have to talk Schue into it, which might be difficult."

"What is it?" Santana asked.

Rachel smiled at her before they entered the choir room. "Slushie Apocalypse."


	14. Slushie Apocalypse

**Knights Nerds Naps**

"I still don't like this."

"Can it, William."

"Sue, this isn't okay. They're basically condoning all the bullying they've received!"

"No, they're not, William. They are simply acknowledging it, accepting that it was a part of their past, and making a metric shit ton of money capitalizing on it. Besides, those aren't only your mouth breathers out there. My Cheerios are with them, and surprise, surprise! They aren't segregated. They mixed it up to make the teams, just like you've always wanted. And for the record, if you cared so much about the bullying, you would've done something about it."

"Sue—"

"Your insanely pretentious voice is already starting to grate on my fragile nerves, William, so let's nip this in the bud now. I know you don't trust me. Lord knows you shouldn't. But you should trust your tiny Streisand. These kids have proven to you again and again what they can do when they come together, and right now they're coming together to make some money for the New Directions and the Cheerios. Now I know you probably had some sort of peaceful, kumbaya chanting fundraiser planned, but Mini Jew's idea was brilliant—right down to having the two of us and the Beiste guard the slushie tanks so no one puts anything dangerous in there. Have a little faith in your team, William."

With that, she stalked off to guard the five foot long metal bin of strawberry-kiwi slushie.

"Okay, everyone!" Rachel called into the microphone a few minutes later. "Just a couple of announcements before we start. First of all, parents, if your child is under the age of 11, please make sure they stay in the kids' slushie zone. We don't want them getting squashed by a linebacker." There was some indulgent laughter before she continued. "Also, as a reminder, while this is a war, we won't be awarding winners and losers. Because, quite frankly, it's going to be far too hard to tell who's more of a mess at the end of this. So, Team Man-Go Bananas and Team Grape of Wrath, your slushie bins are on the north side of the field under the supervision of Coach Sylvester and Mr. Schuester. Team Strawberry-Kiwizards and Team Blue Tropical Thunder, your slushie bins are on the south side, protected by Coach Beiste and our awesome substitute history teacher Mr. Howell. We'll be doing rotations of teams, two at a time for twenty minutes each until the slushies run out. First up- Grape of Wrath versus Strawberry-Kiwizards!"

The two teams squared off on the field, slushie cups at the ready.

"Goggles down! On my whistle!" Coach Sylvster called. "And try not to kill too many of each other." She blew the whistle.

Chaos reigned.

The best part was that Sue had been right. This wasn't the popular kids ganging up on the nerds and geeks. This was a straight up free for all. Half the time people were slushieing their own team. Mike and Rachel, captains for the Grape of Wrath squad, was trying to stage a frontal assault against Quinn and Brittany and some of the football players. Unfortunately, the baseball team was on the Strawberry-Kiwizards as well, and were entirely too efficient at tossing slushies. They ended up being an impenetrable wall. The tables turned when the Cheerios on the Grape team took out a couple of key players—namely Karofsky and Blaine, who were wreaking sniper-like havoc on the kids in purple.

"For Narnia!" Santana yelled, tossing two Big Gulps at Blaine.

"Argh!"

"You'll pay for that one, Lopez!" Karofsky said, advancing on her and completely oblivious to the three Grape team members behind him.

"Dave! Behind you!" Blaine yelped.

It was too late. "NO!" he squeaked, as purple ice went down his shirt.

"SLUSHIE THE SHORTSTOP!" Mike called.

"I don't think so!" a sinister voice called.

Santana and a few random AV club kids spun around. "Quinn!" she growled.

Quinn, Brittany, and two National Honor Society kids had Rachel. Quinn was smirking and holding a slushie cup over the diva's head. "Surrender!"

"DON'T DO IT!" Rachel called. "Leave me! Don't give up the fight!"

"I'm not above torture, Santana," Quinn said, tipping the cup just a little so that a drop of green ran down Rachel's head.

"You're going to die a slow and purple colored death, Fabray!"

Three things happened at that moment. Some enterprising young nerds on the Strawberry-Kiwizards had figured out a way to rig all of their cups together to form a bucket. Santana got the brunt of the force. However, Quinn was laughing so hard that she loosened her hold on Rachel, who bolted and began raining down fiery vengeance for Santana's current lime green state. Third, Mike and the dance team finally got to the baseball players, slushieing the hell out of the varsity members.

Finally, Sue blew her whistle again. "Right! Off the field! Next two teams are up!"

The girls all got together and hosed off quickly so they could watch the rest of the slushie war. They laughed and ran commentary as the rest of their friends fought with the other students. The highlight was definitely when Puck, Zizes and Azimio had Kurt and Jacob Ben Israel cornered. Kurt got a running start, ninja flipped over them, using Jacob as a push-off point, and slushied them from behind. Understandably, they took out their frustrations on Jacob, but he got revenge later, saving Finn from a group of hockey players and Skanks in the process...

* * *

"Moment of truth," Artie said, typing a few more numbers into the calculator.

The New Directions and most of the Cheerios were in the choir room. Artie and a junior Cheerio named Liza were finishing up counting the money they made that day.

"It's got to be a lot," Puck said. "Half of Lima came out today."

"Totaling the ticket sales, t-shirt sales, and concession stand sales, as well as open donations to the teams…"

"We made a grand total of 5,688 dollars and twenty cents."

Absolutely everyone in the room lost it.

"Best plan ever!" Santana yelped, swinging Rachel around.

"Oh my god…even after splitting that with the Cheerios, we could get designer costumes," Kurt said, grabbing Blaine's arm.

"Think of all the hairspray we could buy," one of the Cheerios said.

"Good job with this, you guys!" Will said, beaming.

"Good job, Rachel," Tina corrected. "This was her idea."

"Yeah, and she put in a ton of work to pull it off," Finn said, starting to clap.

The others joined in as Rachel just smiled and hugged Santana.


	15. Mischief Night

_**LbN: Just a reminder, this story is actually the third in the series. The first one is Protecting the Dwarf (one-shot) and the second is Knight in Prada Armor. **_

"They're totally gay for each other."

"Santana, not every hot chick can be gay just because you want them to be."

"Quinn, your gay is showing. Besides, did you see that smirk she had on when she put her burning dildo of pain in between Kahlan's legs."

"On her leg; not between. And please don't say 'burning' 'dildo' and 'pain' in the same sentence ever again."

"Foreplay, I'm telling you."

"Baby, she was cauterizing a festering wound," Rachel said. "That's hardly sexy."

"Are they always like this?" Kurt whispered to Blaine.

"Yep."

"So Rachel, has Santana talked you into her fantastic Halloween costume idea?" Quinn asked.

"No. Thanks for reminding her, though."

"Come on, baby?" Santana pleaded, grinning. "I'd make a great sexy Ms. Pacman. And you'd look totally hot in a vintage cherry patterned dress."

"Though I don't disagree with either statement, I'm worried about the jokes that would inevitably spring from our costume choice."

"Something about chasing Berry's cherry," Kurt said.

"Exactly."

"You need to figure it out soon," Brittany said. "Puck's Mischief Night party is in two weeks."

"What are you going as, Britt?" Quinn asked.

"A dancer."

"Doesn't count, Britt," Santana. "You are a dancer."

"I don't know what else to go as! My Tinkerbell costume doesn't fit anymore."

"Technically it hasn't fit since sixth grade, you just didn't care until now…"

"Guys!" Blaine said, giving a dramatic gasp. "I have an idea!"

"Oh god…." Rachel, Kurt and Santana all said.

"No, seriously, listen…. Why don't we do this?" he said, nodding to the TV.

"What?" Santana asked, confused.

"Legend of the Seeker. Unholy Trinity can go as the Mord'Sith—Quinn has to be Cara, obviously. Rachel can go as Kahlan, I'll be Richard, and Kurt can be Zed."

"This is happening," Kurt said, pulling his iPad out of his bag. "Searching costumes now."

"Good call, Warbz," Santana said. "I'll look good in red leather."

"Damn straight, I'm Cara."

"Does this mean I'll be able to turn into a bat?"

"Please choose tasteful Confessor's robes for me, Kurt."

"Don't you worry. Fashion Master Hummel is on it."

* * *

"Well, don't you two look…interesting," Leroy Berry stated.

"I think they're characters from a show, honey," Hiram said.

"That's right," Santana said, nodding. "Rachel here is the Mother Confessor. I'm a Mord'Sith."

"I wish I knew what that meant."

The girls laughed as Hiram took a couple of pictures.

"We'll be back by eleven," Santana promised.

"Alright. Have fun, girls!"

"Santana?" Rachel said once they were in the car. "Why will we be back so early? The party didn't start until 30 minutes ago, and—"

"I know parties aren't really your scene, Princess, so I'm not going to subject you to too much of it," Santana said, smiling. "We're only going so we can show up with Quinn and the others. We'll probably stay for about half an hour, then I have a surprise for you."

Rachel's face lit up. "Really? What is it?"

"I think you missed the word 'surprise' in that sentence."

"Santana! You know how I am with stuff like this!" Rachel whined.

It was true. Santana knew the diva would have it on her mind for the entire night, which was why they were only staying at Puck's for half an hour. "Don't worry. You'll find out soon."

This didn't stop Rachel from badgering her the entire way over. When they finally pulled up to the baseball field's parking lot, Santana was laughing and Rachel was fuming.

"Does it amuse you that I'm in agony over this?" she demanded.

"It amuses me that you get all worked up over me not ruining a surprise that I've been planning for weeks."

"WEEKS?"

Santana smirked at her and nodded.

"Santana Lopez, you can't possibly expect me to—mmmph!" Rachel cut off as Santana pushed her gently against the car and kissed her.

"Oh for the love of Grilled Cheesus, you two!" Kurt called.

Santana pulled away from Rachel slowly and kissed her nose. "Behave," she said with a wink.

"Get a room!" Quinn called.

"Hey Q. You look good."

"No one told me it was going to take an hour plus Brittany's assistance to squeeze my way into this costume," Quinn grumbled.

"We also had to break out the lotion," Brittany said.

"Wanky."

"Shut it, Santana."

"You all look great," Blaine said. "Shall we make an entrance?"

The Lima baseball field was crowded, but not packed. They spotted their other friends easily and made their way over to them.

Sam was, of course, dressed like one of the Na'vi from Avatar. Mercedes was a zombie rock star. Tina was a vampire ("That doesn't fucking count! She dresses like that normally!). Artie was Professor X, and Mike was Michael Jackson—Thriller era.

"Where are Finn and Puck?" Quinn asked.

"Dancing. Sugar accosted Rory as soon as he got here, so they're out there dancing too."

"What are they dressed as?" Rachel asked, grabbing some candy.

"Rory went balls to the wall and came as a freaking leprechaun," Sam said. "And Sugar is a princess."

"Of course," everyone said.

"Come dance with me?" Santana whispered to Rachel.

"I don't know…I feel it might be unseemly for the Mother Confessor to be seen with a Mord'Sith. You're not even the good one."

"Oh, I'll give you 'the good one' later…."

"MY VIRGIN EARS!" Kurt groaned.

"Not my fault…." Santana said, grinning. "Blaine's got to fix that."

"Thank you, Santana," Blaine said, before his "bro" could continue. "And with that, we'll be hitting the dance floor…er…field."

"Come on, please," Santana pouted at her girlfriend.

Rachel giggled. "Let's go."

They stayed out in the middle of the dancing crowd for the entire time. Both were sweating profusely by the time they decided to call it a night. "I'm going to tell the others we're gone," Santana told Rachel.

"Okay," Rachel said. "I'll get us some water." She parted from Santana, making her way over to the dugout. "Hey Finn!" she called. "What the hell…?" she asked, seeing his odd costume.

"Just think about it," he said, laughing. "It'll come to you."

Rachel grabbed two water bottles, not taking her eyes off of the boy. He was dressed in a jeans and a plain white t-shirt that was covered in snack size cereal boxes. Each had a plastic knife going through it, and was oozing a red jelly-like substance. She smiled. "You're a 'Cereal Killer'. Clever."

"Thanks. Can't take all the credit though. Puck helped."

"I feel like there's a deeper meaning to his ace of spades costume."

"Knowing Puck, probably. Where's Santana?"

"She just went to say goodbye to Quinn and the others."

"You guys are leaving already?"

"Yeah…she's got something planned."

"Mailman…."

"Not like that!" Rachel said, laughing. "At least…I'm pretty sure it's not like that. We told my dads we'd be home by eleven."

"Sup, Finncredible Hulk?" Santana asked, strolling up. "Thanks, Princess," she said, taking a water bottle from Rachel.

"Not much," he said. "You guys' costumes are epic, by the way."

"Thanks. Blaine's idea, but Kurt executed the plan…."

"I should've known," Finn said. "Anyway, I'm going to go find Puck. What are you guys doing tomorrow for Halloween?"

"I don't know," Santana said.

"Handing out candy?"

"Well, Burt's making fajitas, and we're going to have a slasher movie night after all of the kids stop coming around. You guys can come, if you want. I'll make sure he grills some veggies for you, Rachel."

"Sounds cool, Finn," Santana said.

"Yeah, we'll be there."

"Awesome. See you tomorrow then."

* * *

"Where are we going, Santana?" Rachel whined.

"You'll see. I'm surprised I distracted you enough to stop asking for a while."

"Hard to concentrate when you're grinding on me," Rachel mutterd.

Santana just laughed and pulled into a parking lot. "Here we are!"

"The Lima Pumpkin Patch?" Rachel asked, getting out of the car. "Is it even open right now?"

"Not technically, but I called in a favor. Right this way, Princess."

She led Rachel into the main lobby, where two pumpkins were sitting at the carving table. "So…I wanted to do something special for us… I don't know—start a tradition or something. Anyway, I figured Valentine's Day is cliché, and Christmas and/or Hanukkah are for our families. Or your family, I should say. But Halloween is open, plus it's my favorite. So we're here to carve pumpkins."

"Aww, Santana!" Rachel said, bouncing on her toes. She snuggled against Santana for a second. "This is adorable. Please tell me there are patterns…I don't think me freehanding with a sharp object is a good idea."

Santana laughed. "Tons of patterns, don't worry."

Two pumpkins, lots of seeds, one hell of a pumpkin goo war, and lots of teasing about the other's carving skills later, Santana and Rachel had two relatively good jack-o-lanterns sitting on the table. Rachel turned on the tiny electric tea lights and placed them inside the pumpkins.

"Come on," Santana said, wrapping an arm around her. "Let's get these home."

* * *

_**LbN: New poll's up! How do you want the story to progress from here? Go vote! Thanks again to everyone who's reviewed! They make my day. I try to reply to all of them (especially new reviews), but if I missed yours, know that I appreciate you taking the time to review! :)**_


	16. Halloween

_**LbN: Basically an extention of the last chapter. The next one will be longer, I promise. :)**_

"Who on earth thinks it's appropriate to let a ten year old boy go as a pimp?"

"Have to admit, he did look good in purple."

"And it's better than all the skanky Barbie costumes we saw."

"And a sexy Little Bo Peep? I know I'm the last person to judge someone for dressing sexy, but seriously? Why would you let your seven year old go as a sexy _anything_?"

"The Power Rangers were the best though."

"I'm still confused as to what that last kid was supposed to be."

"The evil love child of the 70s and 80s?" Santana suggested as Finn turned the TV on.

"Whatever it was, I hope it never happens again," Kurt said. "My soul is hurting a little bit."

As the opening credits to Friday the 13th came on, Finn opened an extra large bag of Reece's Pieces and grabbed a handful. He passed the bag around, but Rachel declined.

"Are they not vegan?" he asked. "I think we still have some Dots and Airheads left over."

"That's okay, Finn. I just think it's better not to stir my peanut butter cravings."

"God yes…I'm still traumatized from last time."

"Dare we even wonder?" Kurt asked.

"The story is not for the faint of heart."

"I don't even want to know," Blaine said.

"Shh!" Finn whispered. "The movie's starting."

* * *

_**LbN: Bonus chapter next! Leave a random word at the end of your review and I'll incorporate it somehow. Ex: Why does Rachel have peanut butter cravings? "Kumquat" :)**_

_**Also, if you're looking for short & sweet shots of Glee!fic, I just posted my 200th story, aptly titled 200. It goes back and forth between drabbles for Glee and HP. All of the even numbed chapters are Glee. :)  
**_


	17. Campaigns and Pick Up Lines

_**LbN: Wow, you guys really handed it to me on the prompt thing, lol. The words I had to use were: YOLO, managetwa, camogie, polar bear, munchkin, airbags, antediluvian, monkeys, socks, gingerbread, 1985, and Bentley. Happy reading!**_

* * *

"Hey there, Munchkin," Santana said, hugging Rachel from behind. She laughed when she saw all of the campaign posters in her girlfriend's locker. "How's it going being Britt's campaign manager?"

"Eurgh…" Rachel groaned. "Brittany's doing great, but people aren't really taking this seriously. Not just Brittany…the whole election process. She did a Fondue for Two about her policies and ideas, and about how she wanted to be a president for the student body and really listen to what McKinley wanted…."

"I'm afraid of where this is going."

"YOLO and Manage TWA are now trending on Twitter, and there's an inexplicably large petition on Facebook for her to bring the sport camogie to the school."

"Wait… Manage TWA? What?"

Rachel pulled her Blackberry out of her pocket and brought up the tweets.

Santana tried not to laugh. "Um…Princess? That's actually managetwa…the phonetic spelling of _ménage_ à _trios__. _People are asking for threesomes."

Rachel facepalmed. "Well…at least now the tweets make sense. Argh…I'm not cut out for PR."

"You're doing fine," Santana said, kissing her. "And Britt probably thinks it's hilarious. Come on, it's time for us to suffer through history."

* * *

"And if we put this in the context of the antediluvian period…." the teacher droned on.

Santana had tuned him out five minutes ago, but this was getting ridiculous. She took out a piece of paper, wrote something down, and passed it to Rachel.

Normally, Rachel would glare at her for passing notes, but she was just as bored, so she opened it.

_**How much does a polar bear weigh?**_

Rachel quirked an eyebrow at her girlfriend.

_I have no idea, Santana…._

_**Enough to break the ice. How you doin'?**_

_Bad._

_**I put the STD in Stud…all I need is U.**_

_Oh my god, Santana, NO!_

_**Baby, I'm no Fred Flintstone, but I can make your bed rock… :)**_

_I'm seriously considering cutting you off._

_**I seem to have lost my phone number…Can I borrow yours?**_

_For the love of Barbara!_

_**That shirt's very becoming on you. Of course, if I were on you I'd be coming too.**_

_SANTANA! That is so inappropriate! I'm telling Quinn!_

_**Are those space pants, because your ass is out of this world.**_

_No, they're my softball pants, because this ass is out of your league._

_**HOT. DAMN. I love you.**_

_You're like an exothermic reaction; you spread your hotness everywhere!_

Santana was now struggling to keep a straight face.

_**Seriously. Love you.**_

_If I were an enzyme, I'd be helicase so I could unzip your genes._

_**This is amazing.**_

_Baby, I'll treat you like my homework…._

_**Huh?**_

_I'll slam you on the table and do you all night long._

_**Oh my god. If you were words on a page, you'd be what they call FINE PRINT.**_

_Good one. We should party like it's 1985._

_**I think it's 1999, Princess.**_

_According to Prince, yes. However I think 1985 makes more sense, as the 80s were the height of sexual exploration and freedom, and are forever immortalized in pop culture references as a catch-all explanation for bad decisions. _

_**Sometimes, I really love you.**_

_Only sometimes?_

_**Okay, I constantly love you. But sometimes it's overwhelming. Like an extra sparkly explosion during an already kick-ass fireworks display.**_

Rachel snorted.

"Something wrong, Miss Berry?" their teacher asked.

"No sir. Just half sneezed and hiccupped at the same time. Excuse me."

Santana winked at her and mouthed "Good save."

* * *

"Airbags, Hobbit," Sue said, nodding to them.

"And here I thought we'd made some progress," Santana muttered.

"I understand you're in charge of Brittany's presidential campaign," Sue said.

"That's right, Coach Sylvester."

"Well, you've got your work cut out for you, lady. First of all, Brittany needs a platform to run on. Her current 'Power to the People' push is far too vague, and is going to end about as well as giving Frankenteen the keys to a brand new Bentley. Second, she's failing two of her classes."

"What?" Santana asked. "But…she always asks me or Artie for help when she's struggling. What happened?"

"I don't know, but I do not accept failure from my Cheerios in any aspect of their lives. Therefore, Rachel, you will be helping her with her campaign during Cheerios practice. Santana, I expect you to be tutoring your blonde bestie during every free moment you've got. Am I clear?"

"Yes, Coach," they both said.

"Good. Carry on."

* * *

"Monkeys."

"They would never allow monkeys in the school, Britt."

"Free toe socks for every holiday?"

"Too much money."

"Gingerbread houses at Christmas."

"The school would be a wreck. Even more so than it usually is."

Brittany huffed and sat back in the chair, thinking. "What if that was my campaign? Making McKinley better…Taking care of the school?"

"What do you mean?"

"Like…my platform could be that I'm going to make McKinley a better place. Get the students involved with taking care of the school, so we can be proud of it."

"That's a great idea, Brittany!" Rachel said, smiling brightly. "Do you think you can get enough people behind you to pull it off?"

"I'm a unicorn—I shouldn't even exist, but I do. I can do anything."

"Damn straight," Santana said, coming into their corner of the library. "So crack open your math book; we gotta gets to studying."


	18. Thanksgiving

**Knights Nerds Naps**

Santana smiled over at Rachel as they stood outside the post office. "What's wrong?"

"Is it weird that even after winning Sectionals, I still don't feel like I can do this?"

"Yes."

"Santana!"

"Hey, you asked. And it is weird. And insane. Because you're Rachel fucking Berry, and you can do this," she said. "You're going to apply. And you're going to get in and work your tiny butt off, and you're going to be the next Idina Menzel."

"You just made a Wicked reference," Rachel said, mouth dropping open.

"I can't tune out your Broadway talk all the time," Santana told her, grinning. "So here's what we're going to do… I'm going to give you a kiss for every one of the envelopes you're holding. You're going to drop them in the mail slot, and then we're going to meet Wheezy and Trouty Mouth at Breadstix. Deal?"

"Deal," Rachel said, smiling.

Santana gave her a kiss on each cheek, one on the forehead, one on the nose, and one (slightly longer one) on the lips.

"Excuse me!"

"Oh Cheesus, here we go," Santana muttered, turning to face the lady. "Can we help you?"

"You could show a little respect," the woman spat.

"I can't give my girlfriend a kiss when she's feeling emotionally vulnerable?"

Rachel snorted.

"That kind of behavior is offensive to me!"

"The fact that you're bitching me out for something totally innocent and romantic is offensive to me. So let's cut our losses and go our separate ways, shall we?"

"That was totally indecent! There could be children around! I should call the police."

"Go ahead, lady. I'm sure the awesome members of the LPD could use a good laugh."

The woman huffed and stalked off.

"Go on, Princess," Santana said, nodding to the envelopes in Rachel's hands.

Rachel nodded, took a deep breath, and dropped her college applications into the slot.

"I can't believe she threatened to call the police on us!" she griped as they made their way to the car. "Those kisses were totally innocent."

"Welcome to Lima," Santana said. "And to be fair, that last one wasn't exactly innocent."

"Can you blame me?"

* * *

Thanksgiving break finally rolled around the next week, and Santana, Blaine and Karofsky stood surveying their setup. It wasn't spectacular by any means, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut prominent in the display, but they were damn well proud of it.

"What do we do now?" Dave asked.

"What does your family normally do?" Santana asked.

"My Uncle Greg usually says a thirty minute prayer while our stomachs grumble," Dave answered.

"You can hear what my family does," Blaine said, nodding to where the noise from the football game and shouting was coming from.

"Abuela used to make us go around and say one thing we're thankful for," Santana said.

"I'm actually down with that," Dave said.

Blaine nodded in agreement, then jumped when his phone buzzed. "Kurt's here," he said, confused.

"I thought he was spending the day with his family," Dave said.

"I'll go let him in."

Santana shrugged at Dave and the two of them sat down to wait.

"So what's the deal?" he asked. "I mean…everyone knows my family kicked me out…but I thought your parents were cool with the whole…you know…gay thing."

"They are," Santana said. "They just aren't around much. Business and stuff."

"More business, or more 'stuff'?"

"At this point, I'm not even sure."

"Hey guys!" Blaine called. "We picked up two more."

Rachel and Kurt trailed in behind him.

"We're crashing the party," she said.

"Dad and Burt have moved completely into football zone, and Carol said it was cool if I spent the evening with you guys. I brought my famous pumpkin cheesecake."

"And I brought garlic mashed potatoes and a ton of veggies," Rachel said, setting the dishes down.

The doorbell to Blaine's wing rang.

"What the hell?" Blaine asked, laughing.

"Bet money it's Q," Santana said.

It was.

"I brought…bacon wrapped asparagus, and…I don't know what these are. It's just a bunch of stuff from my parents' party."

"Time out…." Kurt said.

"Parents? Plural?" Rachel asked.

"Yep. That's why I left. It's whatever. What's the game plan?"

"We're going around and saying what we're thankful for," Dave said. "Blaine's going to start."

"Whoa, why am I the sacrificial lamb?"

"It's your house, dude."

"Makes sense to me," Santana said.

"It was your idea."

"Get to it, Warbz, I'm hungry."

"Fine…I'm thankful for my family. The crazies on the other side of the house, and us. Quinn, you're turn."

"I'm thankful for this summer. It gave me a chance to get closer to you guys. Snix?"

"Thankful for my girlfriend and her awesome dads. Kurt."

"Thankful to have been unofficially inducted into the bro club… 'significant other' wasn't cutting it for me."

The others laughed at this.

"Your turn, Rachel," Kurt said.

"Thankful for having someone who believes in me and tells me when I'm being crazy," she said, kissing Santana.

"You two are disgustingly cute…." Quinn said.

"Dave…you've got the last one."

"I'm thankful for forgiveness," he said simply.

They all smiled at each other.

The moment was ruined by a few voices cursing out a referee….

Blaine laughed. "Let's eat."


	19. The Bros of Christmas Presents

_**LBN: Blaine sings underlined, Santan's bold, Finn's italicized and Sam is regular. And no, I don't know why Finn/Sugar is my new head canon... Happy reading :)**_

"Gentlemen," Santana said. "I hereby call this emergency bro night to order."

"Wait…if it's bro night, then why is Finn here?" Sam asked. "And where is Kurt?"

"I'm an honorary bro," Finn explained.

"And Kurt's not here because he's a part of the other group for the purpose of tonight's discussion," Blaine said.

"As you all know," Santana continued. "Hanukah and Christmas are just around the corner. I'm going out on a limb here, and guessing that none of us have brought presents?"

The boys all murmured agreements.

"Right. Unacceptable. Finn, Sugar's a total princess. She'll be expecting something awesome. She already kicked Rory to the curb; you don't want to be next."

"Dude, you're dating Sugar?" Puck asked. "When did this happen? And isn't her dad a mob boss or something?"

"Wouldn't surprise me," Finn said. "He's kind of scary."

"Moving on," Santana said. "Sam, Wheezy may act like she just stepped straight out of Def Comedy Jam, but homegirl is going to expect you to work a little. That means no, you can't get away with the new Tyler Perry movie and some tots. Blaine…god help you—I have no idea what to do with Kurt."

"I got it," he assured her.

"The point is—we have to be on our A game here. Now, first we're going shopping. Blaine and I will be the angels on your shoulders to tell you when your gift idea is bat shit insane. Second, we've got to come up with a song to sing to them in glee."

There were groans at this.

"Hey, hey! None of that. And Puck, since you're flying solo, I guess you can be exempt from the singing."

"Why are we singing to them?" Finn asked.

"Because, Finncredible Hulk, there are two days in a year when people expect over the top gestures from their significant others—Valentine's and birthdays. Doing something on another day says you're not slacking just because it's not one of the big two."

"Makes sense, I guess," Sam said.

"We're going shopping now, right?" Blaine asked.

"Yep. Roll out, bros!"

* * *

**BwayGoldstar: Pineapple, strawberry and chocolate, plus whipped cream and nuts.**

**MadameQ: Was any of that vegan?**

**BwayGoldstar: Vegan options are a given when talking to me.**

**MadameQ: You skipped over caramel.**

**BwayGoldstar: Not on a banana split.**

**MadameQ: Why?**

**BwayGoldstar: It doesn't mesh well with the other flavors.**

**MadameQ: Lunacy!**

**BwayGoldstar: Truth. Plus, it's a stickier consistency, which makes the whipped cream slide off.**

**MadameQ: Lol, if Santana ever finds this conversation, she'll have a week's worth of dirty jokes.**

**BwayGoldstar: At least…**

_*If I could be your angel…protect you from the pain…*_

**BwayGoldstar: Speak of the devil…she's calling…. One second.**

"Hi Santana!"

"Hey, Princess. Whatcha doing?"

"Arguing with Quinn over the proper way to prepare a banana split."

"Okay….you two have the weirdest conversations."

"True. What's up? I thought it was bro night."

"It is. I need you to settle a debate for us. If Backstreet Boys and 98 Degrees got into a Christmas battle royale, who would win?"

"What, no NSYNC?" Rachel teased.

"They got eliminated in the prelims."

"I'd go with 98, on the basis of them having more Christmas singles."

"Woo! Thanks, Princess! Talk to you later."

**MadameQ: Where'd you go?**

**BwayGoldstar: Santana is spending bro night arguing the merits of different boy bands.**

**MadameQ: LOL…Grilled Cheesus, help us all….**

* * *

"Santana? Could I talk to you for a moment?"

"What's up, Mr. Greer?" she asked, walking over to the teacher's desk.

"Just wanted to tell you, you did a great job on that last test. What are you planning on doing after graduation?"

"I've applied to a few schools. I'm also thinking about taking a gap year and doing an internship. Still looking around for somewhere that looks good, though."

"Good, good. Well, if you need a letter of recommendation, let me know. You're grades have been outstanding all three years I've taught you. I know you're going to do well, wherever you end up."

Santana smiled. "Thanks, Mr. Greer."

"Don't mention it. Go on; I know you have to get to glee. Have a good break."

* * *

"Ho, ho, ho, everybody!" Will called, coming into the choir room. He tossed some chocolate reindeer at them. "Alright! It's the last day before Christmas break. Anyone who wants to sing, the floor is yours."

The gleeks looked around at each other. Finally, Sam raised his hand. "Our band has a song."

"This looks like a different setup than The Justin Bieber Experience," Will said, smiling as Sam, Santana, Finn and Blaine took the floor.

"It is."

"So what's this band's name?"

"The Bros of Christmas Presents," Santana said. She grinned when all four significant others groaned. "But we're doing the radio edit of this song, since my Princess rocks a Dreidel around this time of year."

"Alright," Will said, chuckling. "Go ahead."

The snow is falling  
The city is white  
Your eyes are shining  
like diamonds tonight  
And we're all alone  
There's no one home  
You're finally in my arms again

**The night is silent  
The moment is here  
I couldn't ask for more than having ya near  
'Cause I love you girl (_love you girl_)  
And I always will (_always will_)  
And now I know the moment is right  
The moment is right  
**  
_**Cause I've been waiting to give this gift tonight  
I'm down on my knees  
There's no better time  
It's something to last for as long as you live  
Tonight I'm gonna give you all my heart can give  
**_  
_I thought I'd give you something shiny and new  
I'd try to find something worthy of you  
But I realized when I looked inside  
There's some things that money can't buy (oh no)  
_  
I feel the magic whenever you're near  
I feel it even more this time of the year  
Cause I love you girl (_**love you girl**_)  
I always will (_**always will**_)  
And now I know the moment is right  
The moment is right

_**Cause I've been waiting to give this gift tonight  
I'm down on my knees  
There's no better time  
It's something to last for as long as you live  
Tonight I'm gonna give you all my heart can give**_

**You know I'll always be true to you  
And you know I'm the one you can turn to  
**Any time, any place, or anywhere  
You know that I'll always be there

_**Cause I've been waiting to give this gift tonight  
I'm down on my knees  
There's no better time  
It's something to last for as long as you live  
Tonight I'm gonna give you all my heart can give.**_

Their band's name may have gotten groans, but the song definitely got a standing ovation….


	20. Holiday Cheer

**Knights Nerds Naps**

_**December 20th, 2011**_

Santana finished writing on the tags for her gifts. After a long discussion (read: argument), she and Rachel had decided on seven small presents and one big present for the holiday season. She grabbed the smallest bag and went downstairs. "Mami! Papi! I'm going to Rachel's—Are you going somewhere?" she asked, seeing suitcases.

"Conference in San Diego," her mom said. "I'm going to keep your father company."

"Wait, but…you'll be back for Christmas, right?"

"Not this time, mija," he dad said, throwing on his coat. "It's a two week conference."

"You're joking, right?"

"Santana…you're old enough to spend time on your own. Holidays can't always be together."

"Right," Santana said blankly. "Have a good trip, then."

Her parents shared a glance before kissing her forehead.

"Call us if you need anything," her dad said.

She nodded, and walked into the living room to grab her phone and keys. She heard her parents pull out of the driveway as she dialed Blaine's number.

"Hi, this is Blaine Anderson. I'm currently teaching Kurt how to snowboard, so leave a message and I'll get back to you ASAP!"

Santana smiled into the phone. "And by 'ASAP' you mean, 'As soon as we get out of the ER', right? Anyway…I need some bro ranting time. Call me when you get back into town. Deuces!"

* * *

"This was a surprisingly low key celebration for the Berry house," Santana commented as she and Rachel relaxed later.

"When they heard I'd already subjected you to a Hanukkah introduction Powerpoint presentation, they nixed my plans for a full blown 8 crazy nights."

Santana laughed. "Thanks for my notebook. It's really pretty."

"You're welcome. I figured, even though you're keeping your plans for next year a total secret from everybody, you could use a journal no matter what you're up to."

"Good thinking. You know I'm not keeping you in the dark just to be mean, right?" she asked seriously.

"No, I know. Might I enquire as to the reasons for your withholding of information?"

"It's mostly because I have a lot of options…and I want to sort through them on my own before sharing them with anyone. That and…I know you won't care too much, but my plans don't exactly match everyone else's…and I don't want people telling me I'm too good for what I decide to do. It should be my decision."

"Damn straight," Rachel said, much to Santana's amusement. "What are your parents up to tonight?"

Santana winced. She'd honestly forgotten. For a split second, she debated making something up. But then she thought about the extreme telling-off she'd get for lying (because make no mistake, Rachel would find out). "They…left."

"Left where?"

"Some business thing. A conference or something like that."

"When will they be back?" Rachel asked slowly.

"Please don't go all ranty when I tell you?"

"Santana…."

"They said two weeks."

"They're missing Christmas?"

Santana nodded. She could see Rachel fuming silently, and waited for the outburst.

It didn't come. Instead, her girlfriend took a deep breath and said, "Well, fine. That just means I get you to myself for the holidays. Did you bring a bag over?"

"Er…no."

"Santana! Please tell me you weren't thinking of staying at your house alone tonight."

"Maybe?"

"Santana!"

"I didn't want to just invite myself over!"

Rachel kissed her. "My dads love you. And they…are less than thrilled that you're more or less on your own 50 percent of the time—"

"70."

"Even worse. Which is why you have a standing invitation to come over whenever you want."

"Exactly," Hiram said from the doorway. "Tomorrow afternoon, you can go get some things from your house. Tonight, it's time to sleep. We have to be up early tomorrow."

"Why?" both girls asked.

"You'll see," Hiram said. It was obvious that he was trying not to smile.

* * *

_**December 21st, 2011**_

"AHHHH!" Santana yelled happily.

"Consider this present number two," Hiram said.

"Bounce World's Ice Kingdom!" Rachel squealed.

Bounce World was Cincinatti's biggest jumpy castle amusement park. Every year, they had a winter themed one that would travel around the state to various places. Lima's stop was ALWAYS overrun by grimy kids. And if there were a lot of them there, the attendants wouldn't let older kids in. Something to do with safety.

"We called and asked what time we'd have to be here for you guys to have a go," Leroy said. "Ah, here comes the rest of the club."

"BOUNCE CASTLES!" Brittany yelled, racing forward.

One of the attendants tried to explain the rules and safety features as the group took off their shoes and jewelry, but he may as well have been talking to a wall. Finally, he waved them forward with a simple, "Have fun."

It was glorious. Sam, Puck and Finn immediately started jousting on one of the platforms, Mercedes, Tina and Rachel explored the secret passages and tried not to get snowed on, and Quinn, Santana and Brittany got chased through the obstacle course by the Abominable Snowman. Artie filmed (including commentary) for a while, until Sam ran over to him.

"What? Why are you looking at me like that?" he asked.

"Trust me?" he asked, handing Artie's camera to Rachel's dads.

"Not in the slightest, at the moment."

Sam grinned and lifted Artie out of his chair. He went to one of the free platforms and started bouncing, singing "Let Me Be Your Wings". Artie alternated between laughing and screaming in terror.

"Please tell me you're getting all of this," Leroy said, chuckling.

Hiram nodded, holding Artie's camera.

* * *

_**December 23rd, 2011**_

"So how's it going?" Santana asked. "How many bones have you guys broken?"

"None, Snix. You should be proud," Blaine said.

"Way to go. How's the whole prolonged periods of time with your family thing going?"

"Surprisingly well. Dad's really making an effort."

"That's awesome, Warbz."

"How about you? Dealing with any insane family traditions for the holidays yet?"

"My parents left three days ago for San Diego."

"Wait…you're alone?"

"Nah…Rachel and her dads kidnapped me. I'm staying with them."

"Oh. Okay, good. Is that why you needed a rant the other day?"

"Yeah, but I'm over it now. Having fun spending Christmanukkah with Rachel."

"Good. At least you're having a good time."

"Yeah. Anyway, we're going to see the Christmas lights in a minute. I'll let you get back to trimming Kurt's tree."

"SANTANA!"

"Bye Warbz."

* * *

_**December 25th, 2011**_

"What are they doing?" Santana muttered.

Rachel smirked. "It's…kind of a tradition."

"Constructing gingerbread houses that would impress Queen Elizabeth?"

"It's how they met. They were competing against each other in a competition."

"You've got to be kidding."

They had woken up late that day and had breakfast before opening "Santa" presents. Santa had gotten both girls Dr. Who—The Musical tickets. Now they were watching in awe as Rachel's dads constructed two gingerbread houses. Apparently this year's theme was Frank Lloyd Wright….

"Santa baby," Rachel sang.

"Yes, love…." Santana smirked. Rachel had been calling her that since the night before.

"I have another present for you."

"Good, because I have one more for you too."

"You two had better not be talking about what I think you're talking about!" Hiram called.

"Daddy! Get your mind out of the gutter!"

"Impossible," Leroy commented. "I've been trying for years."

Rachel huffed and pulled a laughing Santana upstairs. Once they were in her room, she handed Santana a small box. "It's for next year."

It was a photo album.

"I figure…wherever we end up…it would be cool to fill it with our respective adventures," Rachel said shyly.

"It's adorable, Princess," Santana said, hugging her. "Also very appropriate…." She handed Rachel an envelope.

"What's…SANTANA MARIBEL LOPEZ! You got into NYU and didn't tell me?"

Santana chuckled. "I wanted to wait for a while…but I figured this would take some of the 'what happens next year' pressure off. I don't really know if college is for me…but I'm definitely getting out of Lima. So I figured I'd apply to some New York schools so I could be near you. There's…something else in the works too. Another option. But I don't want to talk about that until it's…official. Don't want to jinx it."

"Can I have a hint?"

"It's a gap-year thing. An internship. But that's all I'm telling you for now, and the pout won't work."

"Fine," Rachel said, attempting the pout anyway.

Santana just laughed and gave her a kiss.

* * *

_**LbN: Thanks for all the reviews! You're only 65 away from ousting my HP crack!fic in the number 1 spot :). **_


	21. Frustration

"Alright, guys, welcome back," Will said as the club settled into their seats. "This week, the assignment is ambition. Knowing what you want, and how you're going to get it. I want you to find songs that show drive—determination. I want to get us pumped for Regionals, and it'll be a good lesson for you seniors as well."

Santana narrowed her eyes a bit. This was starting to feel like a setup for some reason. Even so, she kept quiet.

"So…figure out a song for this week, and come with some ideas for Regionals. That's it for today."

Santana stood and grabbed her bag. Before she could follow Rachel out of the room, she heard their teacher call her and Mercedes back.

"Can I speak to you two for a moment?" he asked.

"I'll wait for you outside," Rachel told her, smiling.

"Thanks." She walked over and took a seat next to Mercedes. "What's up, Mr. Schue?"

"Look, I'll be honest with you guys…. This week's assignment…I had you two in mind when I thought of it."

She and Mercedes gave each other a Look before glancing back at their teacher.

"Care to elaborate on that, Mr. Schue?" Mercedes asked.

"It's just…" he broke off, sighing.

Santana tried to keep her annoyance in check. He had the "I'm about to be a mentor, damn it; whether you like it or not" look on. This would be interesting.

"You two are both seniors," he said. "And you're so talented and amazing. I don't want that to go to waste."

"Is this the part where you tell us you've sold us to the Russian mafia?" Santana asked with a smirk.

Schue scowled slightly when Mercedes smirked. "No. This is the part where I tell you both that I expect great things from you. The trouble is that I don't see any drive. You're both…well, kind of lazy, to be frank."

"Hold up, what?"

"Seriously?"

"Yes, seriously," he continued. "You're both amazing singers, and I know you could go far if you just put more effort into it."

"So we're lazy just because we don't come at glee with the intensity of Rachel or Kurt?" Santana asked, brow furrowed.

"It's time to start thinking about your futures, guys," he said. The conversation was obviously not going the way he pictured.

"And who says we're not?" Mercedes asked.

"Wheezy, what's your GPA, girlfriend?" Santana asked.

"3.98. Had some trouble last year with Advanced Calc."

"Exactly. And if I understood Trouty Mouth right, you've got some scholarship offers lined up already?"

"You know it."

"See, Mr. Schue? On the ball. I've got some things lined up too."

"What things? I haven't heard you talk about—"

"Just because we're not as loquacious as Rachel, doesn't mean nothing's going on."

"Damn, homegirl's got you trained. You just used 'loquacious' in a sentence. Correctly, I might add," Mercedes remarked.

"Quiet, Gladys. Anyway, Mr. Schue, we're fine. However, can we take a moment to point out one of your many double standards?"

"Double standards?" Will asked, shocked. "What are you talking about?"

"You've always picked on Wheezy here a bit more for lack of effort. I have no idea why that is, since up until last year we were _all_ lazy as hell. Now I'm part of your project. Let me ask you this…when Mike was considering selling out and becoming a doctor last semester, did you take him aside for a heart to heart?"

"No…but that—"

"Was different? How? He was literally giving up his dreams for a while there. What about Finn?"

"What about him?"

"Kid doesn't have a clue what he's doing after high school. Have you talked to him about the way he coasts through school? No. But if Mercedes and I are quiet for two sessions of glee, all of a sudden we're lazy and aren't thinking about our futures? Seriously…did you even ask around before you decided to host this intervention?"

"I…I guess I—"

"That's a no. I'll walk you to your car, Wheezy."

* * *

It was pouring by the time Santana made it home. She'd given Rachel a shortened version of the Schuester Talk, and Rachel had, like any decent girlfriend, spent the rest of the ride griping about the man. Santana was feeling infinitely better by the time she made it home; rain be damned.

"Hey Papi!" she said, bouncing into the house.

"Hi Santana. You've got a bunch of mail over here. Looks like some colleges want you," he added, smiling.

"Yeah, well, you know…I'm brilliant. They know I'll make their school look good."

"I suspect they were most impressed by your boundless humility," Mrs. Lopez said, coming into the room.

"Probably," Santana said with a grin. She looked down at the pile of envelopes. Two rejections (she hadn't wanted to go to MIT or Pepperdine anyway), and three acceptances. One was from Columbia, one from North Carolina, and one…

"Oh. My. Freaking. God."

"What is it, mija?"

"I…it's…I applied to this program. It's for students on their gap year—"

"Gap year? What's that?" her dad asked.

"It's a year off from school. Students use it to travel or volunteer or gain work experience, or all three."

"Santana, we're not paying for you to party in New York for a year," her mom said.

"I'm not asking you to. That's not—"

"Why don't you narrow down some of the _college_ choices," her dad said. "And we'll talk about them tomorrow when we get home."

"Because I don't want to go yet!" Santana yelled, frustrated. "This is a good opportunity, if you'd just listen."

"Don't raise your voice to us, Santana," her mom said. "Now, I don't know what this is, but we don't have time to argue it out right now. Your father has to go back to work and I have a client to meet."

Santana turned, grabbed her acceptance letters, and stalked out of the room.

"Santana! Where are you—"

"Rachel's."

She managed to hold back tears until halfway to her girlfriend's house. Leroy answered the door when she knocked.

"Santana? What…?"

"Is Rachel here?"

"S?" Rachel asked coming down the steps. It was obvious that she'd been crying too.

"What's wrong?" Santana asked, tucking the letters farther into her purse.

"I feel like I should be asking the same thing."

"Hiram!" Leroy called, walking into the kitchen. "We have two crying girls in our house—it's time for an ice cream run."

The girls managed a chuckle at that.

"My room?" Rachel whispered hoarsely.

Santana nodded and took her hand. When they made it up to the bedroom, she knew something was terribly wrong. Every stuffed animal Rachel owned was on her bed, with only a small Rachel-shaped hole in the middle. They cleared room to snuggle and stayed there, quiet, for a few minutes.

"You first," Santana said, finally.

"I got a letter from NYADA today. I'm not even a finalist," she said, choking back a sob. "I feel…kind of bad. I know I already got a finalist spot for Julliard and NYU, but…NYADA was my number one."

"You're going to nail both of your other auditions though," Santana said. "And when you're famous, NYADA's going be pissed that they turned you down."

Rachel smiled and snuggled closer to Santana. "What happened after you dropped me off?"

"More parent drama," Santana muttered.

"You know you're going to have to give me more than that."

The older girl sighed and took the envelope out of her pocket. "Remember that internship I told you about?"

"Yeah?"

"I got a spot."

Rachel shot up, staring open mouthed at Santana. "Really? What's it for? You have to tell me about it!"

"It's in New York with Ernst, Wilde, and Graves. They're a really big law firm. They have a few spots every year for kids just out of high school. It's basically to see how a firm runs and if you're actually into the whole law thing before you blow thousands of dollars on an expensive degree. Plus, it's paid."

"Santana that's…that's amazing."

"Tell that to my parents. They heard the words 'gap year' and completely shut down."

"What? Why? Did you tell them—"

"Didn't get a chance. They left before I could yell at them anymore."

Rachel sighed. "It's your decision. You should do it, if it's what you really want."

"It is," Santana said sadly. "Just wish they'd give me the time of day to share it with them."

Rachel hugged her tightly. "I'm sorry, babe."

Leroy and Hiram found them fast asleep twenty minutes later, and decided not to wake them.

* * *

_**LbN: How's everyone liking the story? Still on board? Leave a review and let me know :)**_


	22. On My Way

**Knights Nerds Naps**

Santana was curled up on one end of Rachel's bed with her laptop, while her tiny diva practiced for her upcoming auditions.

Predictably, her parents hadn't had time to talk about the internship or college stuff the next day—or the day after—and now her father was in England at some sort of doctor's placement/conference for a month, and her mom was in Seattle for two weeks, settling some kind of high profile divorce between two video game producers who worked for competing companies. So she was staying with the Berry family once again, and debating whether or not to take the internship.

She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't notice that Rachel had stopped singing.

"Whatcha thinking about, _caballero_?"

Santana smiled. "Whether we have enough for a good sized apartment in New York if I don't work a second job the first year," she answered.

Rachel beamed. Lately, their conversations about New York had taken a turn for the "we" centered. This fact was not lost on Fathers Berry, who had insisted the girls live apart for the first year to get a taste of the college experience on their own. They did, however, agree to help Santana apartment shop if she took the internship.

"I don't think I'll have to," she continued. "I have so much money saved up, we should be good."

Rachel wrapped her arms around her and placed a kiss on her shoulder. "You don't have to worry too much, babe. My dads will still be covering my living expenses and stuff."

"I know. But I want to take care of my tiny star," Santana said.

"Always so chivalrous."

"You know it."

"But really," Rachel said softly. "Please don't stress out. Next year is going to be great. Maybe tough at times, but it'll be amazing."

Santana closed her laptop and turned to hug Rachel. "You're right."

"You're going to take the internship, right?"

"I think so…."

"Santana…it's a great opportunity for you! Just because…." Rachel broke off, sighing.

Santana smiled. Rachel was always extremely respectful of her parents, even when she clearly thought they didn't deserve it. "I know," she said. "I just…want to give them a heads up before I accept. I don't want them to think I tried to pull one over on them."

"I get it. Why don't we go cook dinner? Take our minds off this insanity for a while…."

"Sounds good to me."

* * *

"So…. Regionals!" Will said. "After you guys' performance last week, I definitely want to keep Sam and Santana's song in."

The two gave each other a slightly smug nod. They'd rocked John Mayer's "Bigger Than My Body" last Friday, and gotten a standing ovation from the rest of the club.

"Also, Tina, Rachel—I want you two to collaborate on something. We need something fresh…something the judges haven't seen before."

"Got it, Mr. Schue."

Rachel squeaked happily. "I'm so excited! We never get to work together!"

"Which means we'll just have to be extra awesome to make up for it," Tina said, smiling.

"Boys," Schue said. "I want to give you guys the stage for the last part, like we did with the girls for Sectionals. So use the rest of this time to practice and/or brainstorm. Got it?"

There were murmurs of agreement as the kids got to work.

* * *

The weeks rolled by. February seemed to be the month for everything. Regionals was coming up in a week, and Rachel had one of her auditions today—Valentine's day. It was a half day for some sort of teacher in-service, and the auditions were being held in the auditorium at two o'clock.

Rachel took out her phone and smiled. Every time she got nervous, she scrolled through the list of disgustingly romantic text messages she'd received from Santana the night before. All of them amounted to one thing—I love you; you can do this.

"You're going to be amazing," Leroy said, hugging her. "We'll be right here waiting when you're finished."

"Have you seen Santana?" she asked.

"She had to run home after lunch," Hiram said. "But I just got a text from her. She's on her way back."

"Okay…."

"Sweetie, there's still an hour until it starts, and you're the third person up. She has plenty of time."

"Will you have her text me when she gets here?"

"Of course. We're going to go sit with Quinn, Judy and Burt."

* * *

Santana grabbed the bouquet of roses and checked to make sure she had her wallet.

"Where are you off to?"

"Hey Mami. Rachel's audition for Julliard is today. We're going out after that."

"Sounds like fun." Her mom paused for a moment before speaking again. "We should really talk about your college prospects sometime soon."

"Yeah, well…I've been trying."

"I know honey. I'm sorry we haven't been around much lately."

_Lately? _Santana thought. "Don't worry about it—I have it sorted."

"What does that mean?"

"It means I already accepted a spot for an internship at a law firm in New York."

"Wait, what?"

"That's what I was trying to tell you that day. I got accepted into the Ernst, Wilde and Graves gap year program."

Her mom blinked at her for a moment. "Santana, I—"

"Don't…what's done is done. I'm moving to New York next year with Rachel."

"With Rachel…are you planning on moving in with her? That's a little sudden…."

Santana sighed, trying to keep her temper under control. She checked the time on her phone. "Mami, I really don't have time for you to take a sudden interest in my life."

"Watch it, Santana."

"I have to go. The auditions start in thirty minutes."

Maribel paused, then grabbed her coat.

"What—"

"I'm coming with you," she said. "I'd like to see Rachel's tryouts as well. I'm sure she'll love the extra attention."

"That's for sure," Santana said, leading the way out of the house. She and her mom hopped into the Escalade. Before she started the car, she sent a text to Rachel.

_**On my way. You've got this, Princess.**_


	23. Auditions and Competitions

**Knights Nerds Naps**

"So what is Rachel singing?"

"Don't Rain on My Parade," Santana said as she drove. "It was really the only logical choice for her first round pick."

"First round?"

"The auditions are split into three rounds. The first one, you have to do something from a musical. Second is a current song—something recorded this decade. They'll ask for either the full song, or the bridge and chorus from two songs. And the third round, they get thrown a curveball. The judges pick a genre and they have to perform a song from it."

"Wow, that…sounds intense."

"It is, but she lives for it."

She pulled into the parking lot five minutes later and sent a quick message to Rachel.

**We're here! Break a leg!**

They found the rest of the group waiting in the auditorium. Burt and Leroy were dutifully holding cameras. Quinn waved as Santana and her mom slid into their row.

"The tryout order was switched," she told them. "Kurt is fifth and Rachel is sixth now."

"Oh, I bet they're panicking."

"I'm sure they've passed panic and gone into apocalyptic hyperventilating."

"No worries, I gots this," Santana said, taking out her phone.

* * *

Rachel sipped her warm water with lemon while Kurt paced. Both jumped when their phones buzzed. She picked it up and smiled at the text from Santana.

**No one wants this more than you do. I love you—get out there and own this stage.**

"Kurt look—Kurt? What is it?" she asked, handing him a tissue.

He wiped his watering eyes and smiled at her. "Your girlfriend's soft side is showing."

"Huh?"

He held his phone out for her to read.

**You are Kurt Fucking Hummel. You refused to let this place destroy you, and now you're on your way out. Rock the house.**

They smiled at each other and shared a quick hug as one of the judges spoke into the microphone.

"Would the students please make their way onto the stage?"

* * *

After four renditions of Defying Gravity (one of which sucked so hard the girl must've been fucking around with them), Santana was supremely pleased to see Kurt rock one of the songs from Boy From Oz. And of course, Rachel absolutely nailed Don't Rain on My Parade.

The judges decided on the "chorus and bridge x two" version of the second round, and Santana thought Quinn was going to have to be sedated when Kurt ended his with the Nicki Minaj part of "Bottoms Up."

"Seriously," the blonde panted as her fits of silent giggles abated. "That was the best thing ever."

Wrong.

Rachel started off with "Yesterday" by Leona Lewis, and then a different set of music started playing. Apparently she and Kurt had coordinated for this round….

"No freaking way," Santana said, grinning.

"Is she fucking singing Super Bass?" Quinn whispered.

She was indeed. Complete with dancing. She even pulled a pink wig out of nowhere and put it on.

"This is seriously the best day ever."

"Careful, S…. If your grin gets any brighter, they'll use it to power Las Vegas."

"Shut it, Q."

The last round was where things could've gotten sticky—and did for a few people.

The first kid completely panicked when they told him to do an R&B number. Needless to say, he used some of their music.

The second kid started off well on her pop number, but fumbled with some of the lyrics.

Third kid nailed his Nickelback song.

Fourth kid wanted to know the point of doing unartist pop trash.

"That's a dismissal," Quinn whispered.

"Kurt Hummel," one of the judges called. When Kurt walked onto the stage, he said. "We're impressed with your range, Kurt. Give us another R&B number. A ballad, this time."

"Sure thing!" Kurt said. He whispered something to the piano player, then turned back to the audience. "I believe in you and me. I believe that we will be in love eternally…" he sang.

**Well as far as I can see**

**You will always be the one**

**For me (oh yes you will).**

**I believe in dreams again.**

**I believe that love will never end.**

**And like the river finds the sea,**

**I was lost**

**Now I'm free**

'**Cause I believe in you and me.**

**I will never leave your side.**

**I will never hurt your pride.**

**When all the chips are down**

**I will always be around.**

**Just to be right where you are**

**My love**

**You know I love you boy.**

**I will never leave you out.**

**I will always let you in**

**To places no one's ever been.**

**Deep inside**

**Can't you see**

**That I believe in you and me?**

**Maybe I'm a fool**

**To feel the way I do.**

**But I will play the fool forever**

**Just to be with you forever.**

**I believe in miracles,**

**And loves a miracle.**

**And yes, **

**Baby you're my dream come true.**

**I—I was lost**

**Now I'm free**

**Oh baby 'cause**

**I believe**

**I do believe in you and me**

**See I was lost **

**Now I'm free**

'**Cause I believe in you and me.**

Everyone clapped as Kurt took a bow. He smiled and waved at Rachel as they switched places on stage.

"Rachel Berry. Another very impressive voice. We want to see some diversity from you. So you can choose either a country song, or contemporary Christian."

"She's not going to pick country," Quinn muttered.

"How do you know?" Santana asked.

"Ever heard a gospel singer belt?"

"But they didn't ask for gospel," Leroy whispered. "There's definitely a difference."

"That and she has a huge girl-crush on Carrie Underwood," Santana added.

"I've chosen a song that fits both perameters," Rachel said, nodding to the piano player. The music started, and she sang, "She was driving last Friday on her way to Cincinatti on a snow white Christmas Eve. Going home to see her mama and her daddy with the baby in the backseat."

_Fifteen miles to go_

_And she was running low_

_On faith and gasoline_

_It'd been a long hard year._

_She had a lot on her mind _

_And she didn't pay attention_

_She was going way too fast_

_Before she knew it she was spinning_

_On a thin black sheet of glass._

_She saw both her lives _

_Flash before her eyes_

_She didn't even have time to cry_

_She was so scared_

_She threw her hands up in the air._

_Jesus take the wheel_

_Take it from my hands_

'_Cause I can't do this on my own._

_I'm letting go_

_So give me one more chance_

_Save me from this road I'm on._

_Jesus take the wheel._

"This is intensely weird," Santana muttered.

_It was still getting colder _

_When she made it to a shoulder_

_And the car came to a stop. _

_She cried when she saw that baby in the backseat_

_Sleeping like a rock._

_First the first time in a long time_

_She bowed her head to pray_

_She said I'm sorry for the way_

_I've been living my life._

_I know I've got to change_

_So from now on tonight._

_Jesus take the wheel_

_Take it from my hands_

'_Cause I can't do this on my own_

_I'm letting go_

_So give me one more chance_

_Save me from this road I'm on._

_Oh, Jesus take the wheel._

_I'm letting go_

_So give me one more chance_

_Save me from this road I'm on_

_From this road I'm on_

_Jesus take the wheel._

_Oh, take it, take it from me._

Even the judges stood to clap this time.

* * *

"Jesus Take the Wheel?" Santana asked. She'd sent her mom home with Quinn and Judy so she could take Rachel out for a Valentine's/You-Nailed-Your-Audition date. They were at one of the parks, sitting on the swings.

"I actually know only a few very repetitive contemporary Christian songs," Rachel said. "So I didn't want to do any of those. However, I know every song Carrie Underwood's ever done, so that seemed like a good compromise."

"Clever, Princess."

"I'm nothing if not creative," Rachel said, smiling. "I was surprised your mom was there."

"She had a moment of parenting just as I was getting ready to leave. I told her I took the internship."

"How'd she take it?"

"Seeing as she didn't know anything about it…." Santana shrugged. "She was surprised. But she didn't fight it. She's probably telling Papi right now."

Rachel got quiet for a minute.

"Out with it, Princess," Santana said, nudging her. "You're thinking really loudly."

"I think you should invite your parents to come to Regionals."

"Hell no."

"Why not?"

"Because then we'd have to start looking for the four horsemen. The apocalypse would be coming if they showed."

"San…"

"No, listen," Santana said. "My parents have been to exactly two things since middle school. One was middle school graduation, and the other was a cheer competition. And they only went to that because Britt was featured."

"I don't think you're giving them enough credit."

"For what exactly?"

Rachel thought about this. "Fair point."

"I'll invite them," Santana said. "But don't expect them to show."

* * *

"You're going to be fantastic," Rachel told Quinn before she took the stage. "Tina, you too. Go on, Santana and Sam are almost done."

"See you on the last number," Quinn said, giving her a quick hug. She walked up the stairs on the side of the stage, and took her place next to Tina.

Santana, Sam, Artie, Sugar and Mercedes had opened with "Bigger Than My Body". They came off stage as Quinn and Tina began Brooke Fraser's "Arithmetic".

"You were amazing," Rachel whispered.

"Thanks," Santana said with a grin.

"Hey, which of the horsemen do you think is going to show up first?"

"Huh?"

Rachel pointed out into the audience. Across the auditorium, in the third row, Santana's parents were sitting next to Rachel's.

The older girl was speechless for a moment. "What did you do?" she asked finally, smirking at Rachel.

Rachel just smiled, shrugged and continued to watch her teammates.

They all took the stage for the final number. It was for the boys, but the girls were singing back up, and Brittany was dancing with Mike.

Puck, to his utter elation, got to sing lead since he was the one who'd suggested the song.

**I can see it in your eyes**

**You're scared**

**All these things they force you to do**

**Aren't fair**

**I'm here to chase away these tears**

**Baby we can chase away these fears**

**Because**

**Sometimes, oh baby, you fall on your back**

**But girl you're three times a lady**

**I'll ever have **

**You know, you know it's true**

**This is a fight I refuse to lose.**

**And I'll run**

**Have a little faith in me**

**You're scared and alone**

**I'll run**

**This is where we both break free**

**I'll bring **

**You home, you home, you home.**

**Believe me**

**And don't think twice**

**Don't give me**

**Your sad goodbye**

**Believe me**

**Believe me**

**Tonight**

**Believe me **

**And don't think twice **

**Believe me**

**And I'll run**

**Have a little faith in me**

**You're scared and alone**

**And I'll run **

**This is where we both break free**

**I'll bring**

**You home, you home, you home.**

**Have a little faith in me**

**Have a little faith in me**

**Have a little faith in me**

**If you**

**Have a little faith in me.**

The audience was on its feet as they took their bow on the final note.

* * *

_**LbN: A few things-**_

_**1. Sorry if I gave anyone "On My Way" panic attacks :)  
**_

_**2. Yes, you will find out what Rachel did to get Santana's parents there.  
**_

_**3. The next chapter is a bonus chapter! So, you can give me: A food, a song, a location, a theme, and/or a movie, and I'll incorporate them. :)  
**_

_**4. There's another "Knight" poll on my profile, if you'd like to vote.  
**_

_**Thanks for reading! I love reviews more than pancakes ;)  
**_


	24. Changes

_**LbN: So this one got away from me, lol. So this is half of it. I used some of the prompts in this one, and will use the rest in the next one. **_

It was late by the time Santana got home from the New Directions' after party. She peeked into the living room and smiled when she spotted her parents sitting on the couch, watching Resident Evil. "Hey."

"Hi Santana," her dad said. "You were fantastic today."

"Thanks. I'm glad you came."

"It was wonderful," her mom told her. "I spoke to your father about your internship."

Santana stopped outside the kitchen door and turned back to them. "Yeah?"

"Sounds like you know what you want to do," her dad said simply.

"It's a good opportunity."

"It really is. I Googled it while you were at your party. Well done."

"…you're not upset I accepted it without talking to you?"

Her dad shrugged and shook his head. "It wouldn't have been my first choice for you, but it's a good choice—and a smart one. And part of being an adult is making decisions for yourself and doing things on your own."

Santana smiled and walked into the kitchen. She grabbed a bottle of water and some Skittles.

"I think we should have dinner with Rachel and her parents," her mom called.

Santana nearly choked on a Skittle. "Sorry, what?"

"Dinner. With Rachel and her fathers," her dad repeated. "You're going to be going to New York together, and we should bond."

A million sarcastic responses flew through her head at that point, but she kept Snix at bay for once. "I'll talk to her about it. See when her dads are free."

"We already talked to them at the competition. We're having dinner at their house on Friday."

This was going to be a nightmare.

* * *

"We should go on a road trip," Rachel said. "What?"

The other three girls had all turned to stare at her.

It was Friday, during their lunch period, and the diva was trying to do anything, ANYTHING, to keep hers and Santana's minds off the impeding "Family Dinner from Hell". She'd even baked vegan lemon meringue cupcakes for them that morning, just to give herself something to do. It wasn't working. So she figured this was as good a time as any to announce her idea. "It's our senior year…we should spend the last part of it having fun! We could go anywhere!"

"Australia!" Brittany said excitedly.

"We'd need a plane, Britt," Quinn said.

"India?"

"Need a plane for that too. I like the idea, though. How do we decide where to go?"

"Toss darts at a map, see what sticks?" Santana suggested.

"The freshmen geography room is open right now," Rachel said, smirking.

They packed up their stuff quickly, took a few more bites of their food, and raced to the upper floor. Sure enough, the room was empty when they got there. Rachel pulled down the map of the US while Quinn rummaged through the drawers.

"No darts, but here are those sticky magnet thingies she uses," the blonde said. "How about we each toss two and we'll pick from those?"

"Unless it lands in Podunk, USA 90210," Santana said. "Then you get a re-toss."

"That sounds like a satisfactory plan," Rachel said. "Brittany, you go first."

The taller blonde stood in front of the teacher's desk, closed her eyes, and tossed two blue magnets at the map. "Pella, Iowa and… Roswell, New Mexico."

"Pella has a tulip festival every year, and Roswell's got aliens," Rachel said, already on her smartphone.

"A tulip festival?" Brittany asked.

"Apparently it's a big deal. Thousands of people descend upon this small town to see their tulip parade and eat Dutch food."

"Been there, done it," Brittany muttered. "Here you go, S."

She got Minneapolis and Boston. ("We could go see the largest ball of twine!" "No, Rachel….")

Rachel hit San Antonio and Scottsboro. ("That's where the unclaimed baggage center is." "How do you know that, Quinn?")

Lastly, and the others were pretty sure she peeked, Quinn got Honolulu and Orlando.

"Harry Potter World!" she yelped.

"Please, like we're going to have money for overpriced theme park food once we get down there," Santana said.

"San Antonio looks…normal. There's nothing big there, but they have a bunch of little touristy stuff."

"Little…? They have the Alamo, Rachel!" Brittany said. "We have to go."

"You guys should ask your parents tonight," Quinn said.

"Only if dinner goes well," Rachel told her.

"It will be fine," Brittany said. "It's not like this is the first time either of you is meeting the other's parents. And if something goes wrong, just cop to being nervous."

"She's right," Quinn said.

"I normally am."

* * *

Santana was cooking the burgers (Portobello mushrooms for Hiram and Rachel), while Rachel took care of the sweet potato fries. There was a bowl full of homemade chocolate on the far counter, and Rachel was fighting a losing battle trying to keep her girlfriend away from it.

"SANTANA! That's for the cookies."

"Sorry," Santana said, grinning and tossing her spoon into the sink.

"Sure," Rachel grumbled. "Make sure the burgers don't burn."

They kept working in the kitchen, peeking into the living room every once in a while at their parents. They'd volunteered to make dinner so that they could have time alone to come up with contingency plans for disasters. So far, nothing had gone wrong.

However, when they sat down, they knew whatever plans they'd made were not going to make this any easier. Rachel could tell that her dads had their game faces on, and Santana's parents just looked somber.

"What is it?" Rachel finally asked after a quiet dinner.

"Girls, we wanted to talk to you together about something important," Leroy said.

Santana took Rachel's hand. She didn't even care that she was being completely obvious about it. "Yeah?"

Hiram shifted a bit in his seat and said, "Since Rachel is going to Julliard—"

"Dad! Don't jinx me!"

"—and you've taken the internship, we thought we'd take a trip to New York this summer. Get you both acquainted with the area. We also… we also think that it would be good for you two to try living together now. In case you decide to later on."

The girls looked at each other. Rachel was the first to ask the obvious question.

"You want us to live together?"

"We want Santana to stay here for the rest of the school year," Leroy clarified. "Same rules apply, but…we think this will be a good arrangement for everyone."

There was silence for a moment. Santana stared at her plate and nodded.

"May Santana and I be excused?" Rachel asked. She and Santana stood before the parents could agree, but no one objected. She pulled the older girl through the kitchen, stopping only to grab the bowl of chocolate and two spoons. The two headed upstairs into Rachel's room. "I'm sure it doesn't need to be said, but I will anyway. If you need to talk, I'm right here."

"I'd rather just eat chocolate and watch movies and/or shows clouded with lesbian subtext."

"Okay."

* * *

Rachel fell asleep halfway through season one of Rizzoli and Isles. Santana wiggled out of bed as gently as she could and switched the TV off. She grabbed the half eaten bowl of chocolate and wandered back into the hall and down the stairs. After dumping the dishes into the sink, she found Rachel's dads in the living room. "What happened?" she asked quietly.

"Santana…." Leroy started.

"I know they said something…something changed. What is it?"

Hiram sighed and patted the seat next to them. "Come sit down."

* * *

"_It was so nice to see you at the competition," Leroy said, refilling their water glasses. "Santana did such a lovely job."_

"_She really did. I had no idea she could sing that well!" Mrs. Lopez said._

"_Really?" Hiram asked, shocked._

"_This was our first performance," Mr. Lopez told them. "We almost missed this one as well, but Rachel told us, in no uncertain terms, that Santana was going to be fantastic and that we had to come see her."_

"_Oh, I see…. Well, you picked a great one! And they're going to Nationals—we're so proud."_

"_You'll have to tape it for us."_

"_Wait…you're not going to be there?" Leroy asked. "It's just one day."_

"_Our schedules really can't handle it. We'll be lucky to make it to graduation."_

"_You're not going to be at graduation?" Hiram said in a hushed tone._

"_We're going to try. But Santana's a big girl…she knows we can't always be at her events."_

"_That's…a pretty big event to miss."_

"_Santana understands."_

_The four adults were quiet for a long, awkward moment. Finally Mrs. Lopez took a sip of water and spoke. _

"_Listen, we appreciate you opening your home to Santana," she began._

"_Of course," Leroy said. "She knows she's always welcome here."_

"_Still, she's an independent child. And the next time we go away, it might be better to…let her do her own thing."_

"_You want us to leave her alone?" Hiram asked, confused._

"_She starts to pull away when she gets too much attention," Mr. Lopez said. "Really, it's better to give her space."_

_Leroy glanced at his husband, then looked back into the kitchen where the girls were fighting over a bowl full of chocolate. "We need to talk about something."_

* * *

Santana chuckled bitterly. "They weren't lying though. I always did pull away. But that was because I didn't want to get used to the attention that they were giving me. I knew it wouldn't last. It's fine," she said, seeing them about to interrupt. "I think I'm going to go back to bed. Last time Rachel woke up without me there, she started designing missing person's flyers."

"Okay…goodnight," Leroy said.

"If you need to talk…." Hiram added.

She nodded. "Thanks."

* * *

"Ermkjsjghfsa…Santanta?"

"Too early…no talking."

"Santana, you're phone. It's too early for Avril Lavigne and her Sk8r Boi."

Santana coughed and rolled over, searching blindly for her phone. She opened one eye to look at the display. "Lopez House of Barbeque and Taxidermy, how may I direct your call?"

"SANTANA!"

"Ew!"

Santana grinned at Quinn's and Rachel's reactions. "What's up, Q?"

"Guess whose parents just agreed to the road trip…."

"Yours, I take it. And what the fuck is Russell doing there anyway?"

"He still doesn't live here, but apparently he found Buddha and wants to make amends. Anyway, they both said yes, and so did Britts parents. How'd it go last night."

"Eurgh," Santana groaned. She didn't even want to think about it.

"That bad?"

"It's…complicated. Tell you what—meet us at the Lima Bean for lunch and we'll explain."

"Cool. Twelve o'clock."

"See you then, Q." She snapped the phone shut and snuggled closer to Rachel. "We have a lunch date with the blondes," she mumbled.

"Great…let's go back to sleep."

"No can do. We've got to talk to your dads about this road trip business. Q and B's parents already signed off on it."

"I think I smell the souls of dead animals, which means Daddy's awake and cooking breakfast."

"No time like the present," Santana yawned. "Let's go."


	25. Spring Break

_**LbN: Get ready for the longest chapter I've EVER written. There will be one more short Spring Break chapter after this, in which you see Kurt's tweets, and how their break ended, among other things. Happy reading!**_

Rachel smiled as she felt Santana hug her from behind. "Hey! You ready for tomorrow?"

"Beyond ready," Santana said. "So let's hope glee goes uber quick. I know you want to get home and check both of our suitcases with that checklist you made."

Rachel stuck her tongue out at her girlfriend, then laughed when Santana wiggled her eyebrows. "Stop that. And anyway, luck smiles on those who are prepared."

"Then we're about to have one hell of a trip," Santana said. "Because you had maps and checklists printed out before your dads even said yes."

* * *

"_Papas Berry!" Santana called._

"_Morning Dads! Really, Daddy, must you massacre defenseless piglets so early in the morning?"_

"_First, they're full grown, ugly pigs by the time we take the bacon from them. Second, they've already been massacred. I'm just allowing them to fulfill their destiny."_

_Santana snorted into her glass of orange juice. "Hey, since you guys are my parents by default now, I'm guessing I actually have to ask permission for stuff?"_

"_That would be advisable," Hiram said, smiling slightly. _

"_Rachel, Quinn, Britts and I want to do a road trip for spring break. B and Q already got the green light from their 'rents, but B's had the condition that Rach and I had to go too. And we would've asked last night but…you know…drama."_

_Hiram and Leroy shared a glance. _

"_Where exactly are you going?"_

"_San Antonio," Rachel answered._

"_Texas?"_

"_Yep!"_

"_I think that would be…parentally unadvised…."_

"_Tell us your concerns and Rachel will pull out a checklist and ease your fears," Santana said, grinning. "She's on top of things."_

"_Well…four high school girls traveling alone…not to mention it's states away."_

"_I'm sure we could convince Dave, Blaine and Kurt to join us," Rachel said._

"_And we can do check ins at each state," Santana said. "To keep you guys updated. And we won't drive straight through. We'll stop for the night."_

"_And all of us carry rape whistles. Including Blaine and Kurt."_

"_And, in the unlikely event that things get squirrely, I'm rich as hell. The boys can drive back and I'll buy the four of us plane tickets."_

_The two men looked at each other again. Finally, Hiram cleared his throat._

"_Okay…I'll call Burt and talk to him. If the boys go with you, and you promise to check in _hourly_, then yes…you can go."_

* * *

"Okay guys! I know you're itching to get to your spring break plans, so this is going to take two minutes—then you're free," Will said to cheers from the group. "When you guys get back, I want you to have a song in mind. I'm not giving you a theme—it can be anything. Something that was your spring break anthem, or something that's been on your mind…. Anything. One of the things I wanted to do with this club is give you chances at true self-expression. I've been doing a bit of a crap job at that, because of competitions and 'teachable moments' and all that. So you're free to share what's on your minds and hearts. Only one rule—if you're pissed at someone, no taking aim at them. You can sing about anger or sadness, but we don't single people out."

"Cool beans, Mr. Schue," Santana said. "I'm totally down."

"Yeah, sounds awesome," Mike said.

"Good! So…be free!"

The girls, plus Blaine, Kurt and Dave, were the last to leave.

"Ready to get this party started?" Blaine asked.

"Hellz yeah!" Santana yelped.

"Finn's not upset that he's not going, right?" Brittany asked.

"Nah…Burt's taking him to the World of Pancakes, and then they're going camping," Kurt said. "Manly bonding and whatnot."

"I need everyone to text me their snack requests," Rachel said. "Santana and I are going shopping now."

"And we're only going once. So if you forget to tell me you need…I don't know, artisan filtered water or some shit—"

"They actually make that?" Kurt asked.

"Then you're out of luck," Santana continued, ignoring him.

"I require only teriyaki beef jerky. Brand doesn't matter."

"Seriously, dude?" Dave asked.

"It was the one thing from my dad's mission to turn me straight that actually stuck."

"Got it."

"Okay, we've got to be out of here by nine tomorrow," Quinn said. "My mom's making breakfast so we don't have to buy it on the road, and Britt mapped out some places that are on the way that serve vegan stuff for lunch."

"You are a saint," Rachel told her. She squeaked as Brittany hugged her.

"Can't have you starving or getting into beef."

"Shut up, Quinn," Santana said before her friend could make a dirty joke.

"Alright, everyone to their houses! Finish packing and get a good night's rest," Rachel instructed.

Buy the time they'd gone shopping (remembering to get copious amounts of jerky for Blaine), packed and made brownies for the trip, both girls were nice and exhausted. Santana curled up under the covers in Rachel's bed as the younger girl went through her nightly routine. She was dozing off a bit when her phone rang.

"Hello?"

"_Hi Santana."_

"Oh…hey Mami. What's up?"

"_Just wanted to let you know that your father and I will be out of town for a few weeks at a conference."_

"Okay. Not that it makes much difference since I'm living with the Berries anyway."

Her mom sighed, but didn't take the bait.

"_We're telling you because we're your family. That's what families do."_

"In that case, I should let you know that I'm going on a road trip with Rachel and some friends."

"_Really? Where to?"_

"Texas."

"_What? That's far too far away! You guys aren't old enough for this!"_

"First, I'm moving to New York in less than six months, so you've got to get used to me traveling. Second, all of our parents signed off on this. Except in my case, where the Berry men gave me permission."

"_Stop giving me attitude about this, Santana. It works out best for all of us. And you can't tell me you're not happy staying with Rachel. You've always been a very independent girl, Santana, so I'm not sure where this is coming from. From our discussion with Rachel's dads, it seems like all you did this summer was make us out to be neglectful parents."_

"I'm sure that's what you took away from it, but I didn't. All I did this summer was hang out with my friends and make excuses for why you guys were never around."

"…_you wanted better parents; we gave them to you. I'll call you when we get back."_

The line went dead. Santana sat staring at her phone, open mouthed.

"Santana?" Rachel asked quietly, snuggling in beside her.

"My mother seems to think they did me a favor by dumping me on your dads. She thinks I wanted better parents."

"What? That's…."

"It doesn't matter," Santana said, giving her a kiss. "I'm fine. Just go to sleep. We have to be up early."

As Santana pulled her closer and closed her eyes, Rachel knew her girlfriend was anything but fine.

* * *

"Everything all set to go?" Leroy asked as the kids closed the back of the SUV.

"Yep! And don't worry, Mr. B," Kurt said. "I've set up a Twitter account to chronicle our little adventure, and I made sure all your phones are set to get alerts when I update."

"Dear lord, help us," Burt said.

"It had to be done," Quinn said, laughing. "Not only are you all worriers, the rest of the glee club has a running pool on how long it'll take us to kill each other, and who will be the first casualty."

"Yeah, and I've got money on Quinn offing Dave on day three," Finn said. "So keep your shit together, Santana."

"Just for that, Kurt's a goner at the first rest stop," Rachel teased.

"Just please remember to bury me in my Alexander McQueen cashmere sweater. And not with the white pants…it'll look tacky."

"This is going to be an interesting trip," Blaine muttered.

"You can say that again," Santana said.

"Hey, you alright?" he asked as they got into the car. "You haven't said much this morning."

"Fine. Let's get rolling, peeps!"

They all piled into the car and, with one last wave to the group on the sidewalk, pulled away from the curb. Rachel wasted no time in divvying up the snacks.

"Blaine, there are three packages of your evil meat product. And we're not buying more, so ration appropriately. Quinn's sunflower seeds. Dave, somehow the fact that you like dried apricots and Cheetos just makes you all the more endearing. Also, assorted junk food for the rest of us, and Santana and I made brownies."

Brittany whipped round, eyes lighting up.

"Not those kind, Britt," Quinn said.

"Aww…"

"Don't worry, Brittany, I'm sure you'll find these highly satisfactory," Rachel said.

"What's in them?"

"Cookie dough on the bottom, peanut butter cups in the middle, then topped with brownie batter."

"ARE THOSE DUNKAROOS?" Kurt asked, spotting a box at the bottom of the snack bag.

"Yes, Kurt."

"I didn't even know they made these anymore!" Brittany said happily.

"And thus begins our epic journey," Blaine chuckled.

* * *

It was apparent by the time they stopped for lunch that something was seriously wrong with Santana. The group differed to Brittany's furious head shaking, however, and didn't bring it up. She consented to share sweet potato fries with Rachel, and didn't pull away when the younger girl cuddled her, but she was hardly talking. She didn't participate when they played Mystery Science Theater to Ten Things I Hate About You. She barely touched any of the snacks. She didn't even complain when Kurt insisted they pull over at an outlet mall so he could score a deal on some Coach shoes.

They made it to St. Louis by ten that evening and decided to stop for the night. Rachel cast a meaningful look at Blaine, who nodded.

"Santana and I will go check in," he said. "While you guys sort out the bags."

She followed him without looking at the other. Once they were inside, she said, "If you're going to try and get in my head, don't bother."

"I was just going to ask if you needed ranty time," he said as they walked up to the counter.

"Two rooms under Lopez," Santana said.

"I'll need to see the card you made the reservation with," the bored looking receptionist mumbled.

Santana handed it to her, avoiding Blaine's gaze.

When they got their keys, Blaine put a hand on her shoulder. "Hey…I get it if you don't want to talk, but seriously—"

"Look, I know we're bros and all, but that doesn't mean you get to lecture me."

"I'm not! I'm trying to get you to talk!" Blaine said, attempting to keep his voice down. "You don't think I know exactly how this feels?"

"No, you don't. Your parents didn't just abandon you."

"Oh for god's sake, Santana. Fine, you want to play one-up on homophobic relatives? You're right—my parents didn't kick me out. They just banished me to the furthest corner of the house. You know what I had to do to be able to take the car this week? I had to promise my dad I'd go to a fight club with him. He's still trying to beat the straight into me. But no—I have no idea what you're going through. You know who does, though? Dave. And you're extremely patient girlfriend. So instead of pushing us away, how about you let us help. We're your friends."

Santana glared at him for a moment. Then she sighed. "I just…need to deal with this alone."

"Well why'd you come on the trip then? We're worried about you, Snix."

"Don't be. I'll be fine." She walked back outside without another word to him.

* * *

No one knew what happened, but they all knew better than to bring it up. Rachel asked Kurt when they stopped for gas the next day, but he just shook his head.

"He wouldn't tell me," he said. "He just said that she's really upset and wants to work it out on her own."

"Just perfect," Quinn muttered. "We're not even there yet and two of us are fighting."

"Maybe we should just—"

"Don't even finish that sentence," Quinn said. "We're going to Texas. We're going to eat our weight in those crazy good donuts from Shipley's, and we're going to take Brittany to see all of her crusty old mission compounds. It's going to be a good trip—even if I have to beat some sense into your girlfriend."

The trip passed without event, unless you counted Kurt amazing everyone by changing their flat tire.

"What the hell?" he whined. "My dad owns a car shop! Of course I know how to fix a flat!"

Dave insisted on stopping in Austin for dinner because, "You can't find a gayer city in Texas." They made it in to San Antonio by 11 that night, and crashed almost immediately. Brittany, who couldn't sleep without the TV on, threw on I Can't Think Straight.

"I like this movie," Santana said.

All three girls turned to look at her. It was the first full sentence she'd spoken all day.

She shrugged. "It's good writing. And the actresses make the drama believable without it being over the top."

Rachel smiled and snuggled closer to her.

* * *

"They put crack in these donuts."

Blaine and Quinn laughed.

"That's the only explanation!" Dave insisted. He was on his sixth Shipley donut.

"And this is why I had us buy two dozen," Quinn said smugly.

"Kurt, are you tweeting this?" Santana asked.

"Normally I abhor the tweet-what-you-eat trend. But sweet Demi Lovato, these are amazing!"

"Are we there yet?" Brittany asked, bouncing a little.

"Almost, Britt," Blaine said.

Five exhausting hours later, they had seen every single mission in San Antonio. Brittany had been adamant about visiting the Alamo last, and it was lucky they listened. Not only was it severely anti-climactic, but it was close to their hotel.

"Room service. We're going back and ordering room service," Kurt panted.

"Why'd we come to Texas again?" Dave asked. "It's hotter than Satan's toenails out here."

"Quit whining," Brittany said cheerfully, wiping more sunblock on Quinn's nose. "We're almost done. And thank you all for humoring my weird historical interests."

"Any time, Britts," Santana said. "Now come on; I wants a snow cone."

* * *

Rachel was having a "spoke too soon" moment. "Quinn!" she said, slowing down on the wet surface by the pool. "Have you seen Santana?"

"Not since lunch. I thought she was with you."

"I can't find her."

"The boys are in the arcade. She might be with them," Brittany suggested.

Rachel nodded and tried not to sigh. She thought things were getting better. The day before, after they'd come back from the Alamo, they'd all ordered room service and hung out in the boys' room watching Clue. Santana had talked and laughed at Dave's corny jokes. Rachel had hoped her girlfriend would be okay, or at least would talk to her. No such luck, it looked like.

She went back upstairs to their room to check, and found Santana sitting on the bed. "Where were you?"

"I went for a walk."

"Without telling anyone? Santana, that's dangerous."

"Sorry, Mom."

"Stop. We've been going in circles for four days now. I don't want to spend this week with you upset. I want you to have fun."

"Maybe I'm not in the mood for fun."

"Then why did you come with us?"

"You sound like Blaine."

"Santana…we're just worried about you."

"Look, Rachel, I don't need you mothering me! I'm fine."

"SANTANA!" Rachel shrieked.

At this, Santana turned around, because first, Rachel hardly ever raised her voice, and second, it sounded like she was about to cry. "Rach—"

"No. You listen. I've tried to let you work this out on your own. I'm always afraid I'm being the clingy girlfriend Finn always said he couldn't stand—so I put up with your mood swings this entire trip. But enough is enough. I'm not mothering you. I'm girlfriending you. You, Santana Maribel Lopez, deserve to be loved, and included, and cared about. And cared for, if need be. That's one of the perks of being in a relationship. I can't fix this—no one can. But I can listen. Blaine can listen. All of us would, as you once put it, walk barefoot across hell to punch Satan in the nuts just to see you smile. But you have to let us in."

"Rachel…" Santana muttered, stepping forward.

Rachel shook her head and backed up. "You needed time to think; I'm giving it to you. I'm going for a walk. I'll meet you guys at dinner."

Santana watched her go before sitting on the bed to cry. "Fuck."

* * *

Rachel pulled her jacket around her as she wandered down the Riverwalk. She wasn't mad, or sad, or even upset anymore. All the emotion had washed away to a general weariness that she didn't care to admit to herself. She shouldn't be tired of her girlfriend, but she was. She leaned against the wall of Hard Rock Café and sighed. It would be fine, she told herself. Things always were. It was just a question of how long it took for things to be fine….

"Hey there."

"Oh, hi," Rachel said, eyeing the college boy who'd come up to her. She assumed he was in college—he was wearing an A&M hoodie.

"My friends and I noticed you standing there. Do you want to come hang out with us?"

"Oh, that's so sweet of you! But I'm waiting on my group."

He gave her a curious look. "Why'd they let you come by yourself? I'm from around here, and you shouldn't underestimate the drunks on the River. Especially if they've been pounding margaritas from Republic."

Rachel smiled. "We just got separated. So I came ahead to the restaurant."

"Cool."

"How do you like A&M?"

"Oh, I don't go there. My brother does. I go to Julliard."

"No way! I just auditioned a few weeks ago!"

"That's too cool! I hope you get in. It's been the best experience of my life. I'm Brody, by the way."

"Rachel Berry."

"Nice to meet you, Rachel Berry. You sure you don't want to sit with us? Just until your friends get here?"

"Her friends are here."

Rachel peeked around the older boy to see Santana, Quinn, and Brittany.

"Right," Brody said. "Well…hopefully I'll see you next year. Take it easy."

"Gone for an hour, and she's already made a friend," Quinn said, shaking her head. "The Rachel Berry Personality knows no bounds."

Rachel looked over at Santana.

No words were said, but the older girl pulled her into a tight hug. There were no apologies, no declarations of feelings, but for the rest of the night, Santana was the most attentive girlfriend on the planet. Pulling out chairs, opening doors, the works….

"You don't have to do all this," Rachel said, as they fell back from the group a bit. "I know you were upset. It's okay."

Santana kissed her. "I may not have to, but I definitely want to."

Her knight was back.


	26. Beats and Tweets

_**LbN: Pure, ridiculous silliness this chapter. There will be a proper chapter soon, but I had to do this. Also, the previews at the end are for my next multichapter fic. There will be a poll up soon. Happy reading!**_

_Spring Break Playlist_

Cutting Up B&S Style ("The fuck is this?" "Dave is now banned from DJing.")

Geek in the Pink ("I never noticed how dirty this song was….")

Tongue Tied ("We should do this for Nationals!" "Always planning ahead, aren't you?")

Howl ("Quinn! This is creepy! Change it!" "Hell no. You don't just turn off Florence and the Machine. It's a cardinal sin.")

Billionaire ("_A DIFFERENT CITY EVERY NIGHT, OH I, I SWEAR…")_

Love You Like a Love Song ("Never pegged you as a Selena Gomez fan, Lopez." "Shut it, Warbz.")

Give It To Me ("Better, Warbz?" "Much, Snix.")

The Prayer ("Rachel…." "Nothing wrong with a little Groban.")

Bye Bye Bye ("Fuck no! You better have Backstreet on here, too!")

Larger Than Life ("Calm down, Quinn.")

Ching-A-Ling ("Stop catering to your girlfriend, Rachel." "This one's Brittany's actually.")

* * *

_NDRoadWarriors Twitter_

_On the road! Thnx to Mama Judy for brkfst._

_This gas station has an indecent amount of jean/leather combo jackets._

_Britt came up with a game called "My Cows". It has turned into a blood sport._

_PrincessSugar- Claiming cows, right?_

_NDRoadWarriors- Yep._

_Vegan lunch spot in the middle of nowhere._

_Cow count: Quinn's winning._

_Mama Judy- Somehow, I'm not surprised._

_The Arch!_

_Tired, bed time! No one's killed anyone…yet._

_DarthSamuel- Give it time…_

_Breakfast at the hotel. On the road again._

_Berry1 - Don't eat the eggs!_

_NDRoadWarriors- Too late…?_

_Understand why we shouldn't have eaten the eggs. 3 on Pepto._

_FinncredibleHulk - Overshare, dude._

_Seriously just saw a waterpark n the mddl of a corn field._

_HotChocolatePrincess - Hot damn mess._

_DancingKing- You didn't stop?_

_Just hit TX! _

_Austin! Dave's making us stop for a drag show and burritos._

_TCChang - That just…doesn't go together._

_BHummel- I love and accept all of you for who you are…but if you come back with tramp stamps, we're having a serious talk._

_NDRoadWarriors- Too late…?_

_Berry2- RACHEL!_

_NDRoadWarriors- JK, Papa Berry._

_San Antonio! Checked in safe & sound._

_Remember the Alamo!_

_Mr. Pierce- Oh goodness. Hope Britt's not talking your ears off._

_Chill day at the hotel. After all that walking, we're tired._

_OMG, SANTANA GOT US TICKETS TO WICKED!_

_HotChocolate- Remind me to go with you guys next time._

_WTH do they put in these donuts?_

_Mama Judy- Quinn took you to Shipley, didn't she?_

_NDRoadWarriors- We're hopelessly addicted._

_NDRoadWarriors- Mama Judy, this is Dave. Quinn's paying for my rehab._

_Mama Judy- There's no coming back from donut addiction._

_Last day. Museum, Botanical gardens, and Fiesta TX._

_Leaving…not on a jet plane._

_Why does it seem like this is going faster?_

_Puckzilla- Is Santana driving? :)_

_NDRoadWarriors- Keep it up, Chuckles….-S_

_WTH? A blizzard? In MARCH? Stuck in Tulsa for the night._

_On the road again…carefully._

_MY COWS!_

_BHummel- He's getting competitive. Quinn must still be winning._

_NDRoadWarriors- Yep!- Q_

_Never eat rest stop tuna. Bleh._

_Quinn hid some Shipley's donuts! WE FEAST LIKE GODS!_

_DancingKing- Donuts and tuna?_

_TCChang- That seems combustible._

_NDRoadWarriors- Nothing can beat the Hotel Eggs Incident._

_Well…if anyone bet that we'd all make it back alive…you're 2 hours from collecting your loot._

_Potty break, but we're almost there._

_We're baaaaack!_

* * *

**Glee Previews:**

**Snapshots of Forever**

Quinn looked up from her book to watch her girlfriend type away at her laptop. She smiled as Santana Googled apartments in New York. "Stop."

"What?"

"You're doing it again," Quinn said.

"Doing what?"

"Stressing over college. It's our last summer as a group! We should be…I don't know, toilet papering Schue's house or something."

"I can't be the only one stuck here in Lima," Santana whispered. "Even Finn's getting out! If that dickbag's leaving, I am too."

"You are getting out of here. You've got a full ride to Cornell. And I thought you and Finn had buried the hatchet," Quinn said, laughing.

"For one specific fight. Doesn't mean we're not still awful to each other on occasion. It's a delicate balance. And as to Cornell, the full ride doesn't matter if I'm sleeping in a tent on the streets."

"I see. Okay, close your laptop. We're going swimming."

"It's ten o'clock at night."

"I fail to see a problem."

Santana gave her a look, then grinned. "Fine," she muttered.

Quinn hugged her. "You're going to be fine. Even if you're stuck in the freshmen dorms for a year." She started to leave the room, but Santana called her back. "What is it?"

"Uh, aren't you forgetting your swimsuit?"

"Since when do we need clothes to swim?"

Santana grinned. She loved her girlfriend.

**Date Night in a Jar**

"Oh shit."

"What's wrong?" Quinn asked, peeking over Santana's shoulder to see inside their apartment.

"Rachel's crafting stuff is out."

"Oh god…Um…let's go hide in the game room before she—"

"Santana? Quinn? Oh good, you guys are home."

"Hey Rach," they said in unison.

"Dinner's almost ready," she said. "And I know you're terrified that I'm about to rope you into some kind of elaborate art project, but calm down. Your participation is minimal, and I think you'll actually enjoy it."

"That's what you said about the knitting group," Santana reminded her.

"And the candle making class."

Rachel huffed and crossed her arms. "Fine, make you a deal. I'll tell you what it is and if you don't want to join in, that's perfectly fine. I won't even pout."

Something in the way their girlfriend was smiling told the other two that there was no way they were going to win. Still, they agreed and sat down on the couch.

"I'll be brief. The gist is we suck at choosing date nights. Absolutely suck at it. And it's not that we're all super busy. We're in a routine that's perfectly conducive to spending time together. So I found this idea on Pintrest—"

The other two groaned.

"Shut up," Rachel said, tossing a popsicle stick at them. "Santana, I don't complain about your Tumblr addiction, or Quinn's crazy Farmville compulsion."

"True. Sorry," Santana said, sniggering. "What is all this?"

"Date night in a jar," Rachel said. "So you have nine sticks, sorted into groups of three by their different colors. Red ones are expensive dates, or dates that take planning. So, for instance, a weekend away somewhere. Hot pink are dates out that take less planning and are less expensive—say a movie or something. Light pink are stay at home dates."

"What are the white ones for?" Quinn asked, spotting the three plain sticks already in the jar.

"Those are surprise dates. So whoever pulls them gets to plan it. And it can be anything they want."

Santana and Quinn looked at each other. It was a good idea, but they weren't ready to concede defeat yet.

"So," Rachel continued, smirking. "If you just write down your date ideas, keeping the color scheme in mind, we stick them in a jar, and each week, someone gets to pick."

"What if we're strapped for cash and we can't do big dates?" Santana asked.

"Then we take the red ones out."

"Obviously," Quinn said, giving Santana a playful nudge.

"Right, right."

"So?" Rachel asked.

"You win," the other two said, picking up a few sticks and their Sharpies.

**The Notebook**

Rachel and Quinn sat in the living room playing Connect Four. It was the seventh round, and Quinn was determined to beat Rachel at least once.

"Quinn? Can I ask you something?"

"What's up?"

"Earlier today, at the pool party…you seemed a little put out. Was something wrong?"

Quinn sighed at the memory.

* * *

"_Why are you crying, Lady Asian?" Santana asked._

"_It's just…this is one of the last times we're going to see each other for an entire year. You all start leaving in a couple of weeks."_

"_It's okay, Tina," Sam said. "Everyone will be back for Christmas, and we're all going to keep in touch."_

"_Though some of us will see each other more…" Finn said, throwing a glance at Quinn._

"_What does that mean?" Mercedes asked._

"_Quinn bought Rachel a pass to New Haven."_

"_What?"_

"_That's awesome."_

"_Where's my ticket?"_

"_Buy your own, trust fund baby," Quinn muttered. She glanced at Rachel, who smiled and shrugged._

* * *

"I just…I don't know. I was annoyed that it was big news," Quinn said.

"Was it supposed to be a secret?" Rachel whispered conspiratorially.

Quinn laughed. "No… I just didn't want it to be a big deal. I wanted it to be for us…something to make the transition easier. Not a one-up contest for who's staying in touch with whom."

"Totally get it. That's why I didn't tell Finn."

"How'd he know, then?" Quinn asked, completely caught off guard.

"He came over while I was packing and he saw it sticking out of my backpack. He was kind of upset."

"Why?"

"He thinks it's a set up. Can't believe we're really friends," Rachel said, giving Quinn a sad smile. "And he doesn't really trust me to make good decisions without him around."

"In honor of our newfound friendship, I'm going to keep the armada of sarcastic comments I just thought of to myself."

Rachel laughed. "Don't worry. We'll think of another way to bond while we're at school."

Two weeks later, as Quinn was packing her last suitcase into her mom's SUV, Rachel pulled up in front of their house. She hopped out, waved to Judy, and ran to hug Quinn.

"I'm going to miss you so much!"

"I know. But that's what your Pass is for. Wait a few weeks, and then if either of us is losing our heads, we'll plan a visit."

Rachel nodded and held out a small box. "For you. But you can't open it until you get to New Haven."

"Quinn, time to hit the road!" Judy called.

"Alright. What is it?" she asked Rachel, shaking the box a little.

"If I told you, it would take away all the suspense." Rachel hugged her one last time. "I'll miss you," she whispered.

It took Judy putting the present in a suitcase for Quinn to resist opening it. She made herself wait until she'd unpacked all of her things before she took the box out. Sitting on her bed, she unwrapped it quickly, and found herself staring down at a notebook. It was black and white, with a floral design on the cover. On the first page was a message from Rachel.

_Quinn,_

_Here's something just for us. Once a week, we each write a letter in this notebook, and we send it to each other. I've looked up shipping—it won't cost that much. I think it'll keep us sane in between visits. I miss you already._

_Love, Rachel._


	27. It's Really Happening

**Knights Nerds Naps**

"Well, how was everyone's first week back?" Will asked. He laughed when they all grumbled, and ducked when Puck and Mike threw paper balls at him. "Hey now! None of that. Right, so a couple of you have gone already. Does anyone else want to sing?"

Blaine and Santana glanced at each other and Santana raised her hand. "We do."

"Floor's yours," Will said with a smile.

They took the stools at the front of the room, and Blaine nodded at Santana.

"Fine," she said, sighing playfully. "He's making me do the speech so he doesn't cry. Anyway, I'll keep it short and sweet. Over the past year, I've learned a lot about myself. And thanks to a lot of you, I've made it through some really tough times. Warbz too. Over the break, I was reminded…quite strongly…that I have people in my life who care about me as much as I care about them. Blaine and I decided that this song pretty much sums up the glee club, and how we feel about it. With graduation coming up…we think it's a good reminder of what this club is—what we'll always be." She nodded to the band.

_If you're lonely  
And need a friend  
And troubles seem like  
They never end  
Just remember  
To keep the faith  
And love will be there  
To light the way_

_**Anytime you need a friend  
I will be here  
You'll never be alone again  
So don't you fear  
Even if you're miles away  
I'm by your side  
So don't you ever be lonely  
Love will make it alright**_

**When the shadows are closing in  
And your spirit diminishing  
Just remember  
You're not alone  
And love will be there  
To guide you home  
**  
_**Anytime you need a friend  
I will be here  
You'll never be alone again  
So don't you fear  
Even if you're miles away  
I'm by your side  
So don't you ever be lonely  
Love will make it alright**_

**If you just believe in me**  
_I will love you endlessly_  
**Take my hand**  
_Take me into your heart_  
**I'll be there forever baby**  
_**I won't let go  
I'll never let go**_

_**Anytime you need a friend  
I will be here  
You'll never be alone again  
So don't you fear  
Even if you're miles away  
I'm by your side  
So don't you ever be lonely  
Love will make it alright**_

Quinn, Tina, Rachel and Schue were all crying, and the others looked like they were barely holding it together. Blaine pulled Santana into a hug before they took their seats.

* * *

The ride home was quiet. The gleeks had gone on to discuss Nationals, but it was obvious that Blaine and Santana's song had struck a chord with them. Rachel was surprised to find that she didn't have the desperate urge to talk to Santana about it. She understood perfectly, and knew her girlfriend wasn't big on discussing feelings more than once a week. They got back to Castle Berry and dropped their bags by the door.

"You're dads won't be home until late, right?" Santana asked

"That's right. Want to make out?"

"…."

"You want to play video games, don't you?"

"…sorry…"

Rachel laughed. "Fine, but I'm breaking you out of your Xbox shell."

"What's that mean?"

"You'll see. Go make popcorn."

"Bossy."

Rachel kissed her hard on the lips. "Deal with it."

"Okay, now I want to make out."

"Too bad. Should've hopped on the offer when I first suggested it."

"Wanky."

"Go make the popcorn!"

"Fine." Santana walked into the kitchen and dug around in the cabinet for a bag. She heard odd clunking and shuffling noises and peeked into the living room. "Uh…Princess? What's that?"

"This, Santana, is a Sega Genesis. It's time you paid homage to the old gods…."

"I'm not sure what's hotter…your newfound bossiness, the old school gamer thing, or the fact that you just made a Game of Thrones reference."

"Technically the series is called A Song of Ice and Fire."

"One. Game. Then we're making out."

"Take your pick," Rachel said, nodding to the cardboard box.

"Holy shit! Did you have every game they made?"

"Dad used to be a big nerd."

"Streets of Rage sounds cool."

Rachel patted the space on the couch next to her and handed Santana the controller.

And that was where Quinn and Brittany found them two hours later.

"Santana, Rach! Oh god, they're gaming," Brittany said. "We may never get their attention."

"In that case, I'll just go make a snack. How's bacon sound?" Quinn asked, grinning.

"Quinn! Don't you dare cook bacon in my kitchen!" Rachel squealed, pausing the game.

"Why are Shaq and the Green Goblin beating the shit out of each other?" Brittany asked.

"His name is Memphis, and it's a combat game."

"Shaq had a combat game…" Quinn said.

"We've played through about five games so far. Someone found the Sega magazines at the bottom of the box and is hell bent on memorizing the cheat codes," Rachel said, glaring at Santana.

"They have the house to themselves and they're beating the shit out of each other virtually, instead of making out…." Quinn said in her "what the fuck am I going to do with these idiots" voice.

"What's up, you two?" Santana asked, laughing. "Britt bounced in here like Rachel on coffee."

"I got in!" Brittany said, beaming and holding up an envelope.

"In?" Rachel asked.

"In to…no…" Santana said, a smile spreading across her face.

"Yep," Quinn said.

"Oh my god," Rachel squealed. "Is it…?"

"London Academy of Dance," Brittany finished.

Santana ran to hug her. "I knew you'd do it!"

"Mike got in too! So I won't be alone."

Rachel gave a spot on example of a fangirl squee, hugged Brittany, and ran to grab her phone from the charging dock.

"What's she doing?"

"Calling her dads," Santana said. "You're about to witness the wonder of an impromptu Berry party. Be prepared."

* * *

There was cake. There were streamers. Rachel and Quinn busted out the karaoke machine, and Fathers Berry made fajitas. It was nearly midnight by the time Quinn and Brittany left.

"Are you sure you don't just want to stay?" Rachel asked.

"Nah, I've got to get home. Mom and I are going shopping tomorrow," Quinn said.

"I have a dance class early," Brittany said. "But we should have a girls' night soon!"

"Totes, Britt," Santana agreed.

"See you guys later!"

They waited until Brittany and Quinn had driven off before closing the door. Santana smiled when she saw Rachel yawn. "Good night, little bear…."

"Why am I a bear?"

Santana giggled. "It's a kids' book."

"Must I be a bear?"

"Bears are cool! I could have gone with It's Bedtime, Wibbly Pig."

Rachel quirked an eyebrow at her, trying not to smile.

"Llama Llama, Red Pajamas?"

This time, Rachel couldn't contain a snigger. "Okay, fine. I'll be little bear." She paused and looked out the window. "I can't believe Brittany's going to London. This is such a big step for her. I know she's going to be amazing, but I'm glad Mike's going with her. He'll help her adjust. We should research ways to lessen jetlag. That can be terrible when you're in a new place and…." She broke off mid-ramble when Santana took her hand. "Sorry, I'm rambling."

"Yes, you are. And it's cute."

"I'm just so excited and worried for her. London's just so far away. But I'm really proud of her. She worked so hard to keep her grades up—even after she lost the election."

"I know, I'm proud of her too." Santana kissed her. "There's something else there, too, though. I know your show face when I see it. What's wrong?"

Rachel smiled and shook her head. "It's really happening. Everyone's leaving."

Reading between the lines a bit, Santana gave her another kiss and said, "You're going to get in. And we're going to move to New York and have an amazing time there. Come on; let's go to bed."


	28. Bro Night, Interrupted

**Knights Nerds Naps**

"Santana, I'm not telling you again," Rachel said.

The older girl pouted. "I'll be, like, the worst girlfriend ever if I go!"

Rachel rolled her eyes. "I have a stomach bug, honey, not the plague. I'll be fine by tomorrow. Besides, Quinn and Kurt are going to keep me company. Go have your bro night."

"…are you sure?"

"I'm positive," Rachel said. She breathed deeply for a second, and smiled weakly when Santana ran for the puke bucket. "I'm fine. For now. We might want to leave that next to the bed though."

"Knock, knock," Kurt said softly. "I brought my favorite vegan diva some soup. How's our angel?"

"Queasy," Santana said. "And kicking me out apparently."

"Tell her you'll take care of me so she can go have fun," Rachel whined.

"We're going to take perfect care of your princess," Quinn said, entering the room. "So go slaughter Puck and Finn at laser tag."

Santana smiled at the three of them. "Fine…. I can see I'm not wanted," she said dramatically. She kissed Rachel's forehead and frowned. "You're burning up."

"I'll grab a thermometer," Quinn said.

"In the medicine cabinet," Rachel called. "It's fine, baby. Go have fun."

"Call me before you go to sleep?"

"Promise."

"Take care of my woman, Kurt," she said with a wink. "I'll come over tomorrow."

"Okay. My dads should be back by the afternoon, so if you can't make it due to hangover or other impairment, don't feel bad."

Santana laughed. "You know me well, but I'll be here. See you guys."

"So, Madame Berry," Kurt said. "Which movie should we watch first?"

"For the love of all that is holy, not Funny Girl," Quinn said, sticking the thermometer in Rachel's ear. "Damn, girl…."

"What?" Kurt asked.

"One hundred and two."

"That explains why my teeth hurt," Rachel quipped.

Quinn jumped back just in time before the brunette hurled into her puke bucket.

"I'll go on a Gatorade run," Kurt said, slipping off the bed.

* * *

"Are you going to mope about Rachel all night?" Finn asked.

"Finnocence…." Santana warned.

"She's sick, and Santana's worried," Sam explained calmly. "Just let her check her phone and then we can go in."

Finn huffed. "I'm going to check on our reservation," he said, stalking off.

"What's up his ass tonight?" Santana asked.

"Sugar's giving him a hard time," Puck said, smiling slightly.

"Doesn't she always?" Blaine asked.

"Nah…I mean, she wants him to meet her dad."

"Oh, shit," Santana, Blaine and Dave all said at once.

"Yeah…so go easy on him tonight, Snix," Puck said with a wink.

They trooped into the laser tag site's lobby and dropped their stuff in one of the rental lockers. They went up to the desk and Finn held out all of their activation kits.

"You put your code name and team color in. I thought we could do half of us on red and half on blue."

"I'm down," Sam said, taking the small tablet from Finn.

Once they got their numbers, they mixed them up and picked at random, and lined up at the entrance bay.

"Oh, you've got to be kidding…."

"What's up, Snix?"

"Look the shots ahead of Dave."

Puck craned to see the front of the line, and scowled. "Colby."

"Stick close to us," Blaine said.

They walked into the "armory" and lined up under their numbers.

"Each number should have a vest, a radio, and a gun," the attendant explained. "First, put your vest on, and secure it with the buckle around your waist. Next, you're going to make sure your radios are secure. To do this, all you have to do is give the cord a small tug. Got that? Okay, now you can turn on your guns. Press and hold the blue button at the front."

Santana looked down at the display. "Really, Puck?"

"What?"

"Only you would pick the name The Atomic Schlong."

"Better than Knight in Prada Armor…." Dave muttered.

"When the buzzer sounds," the attendant called, "the red team will make its way through the far garage door. Blue team, you'll come through the door behind me." He walked over to a large button and pressed it. A loud buzzer went off, and the garage doors lifted.

Santana, Dave and Finn ran through the doors and started climbing the stairs. For a room painted black with only blacklit graffiti as light, it was surprisingly easy to see.

"Formation Epsilon," Dave whispered.

"Which one is that, again?" Finn asked.

"Oh, Jesus…."

* * *

Thirty minutes in, Santana was feeling pretty good. Sure, Colby and his jackass friends had her marked, but she was still doing well. He appeared under the grate she was crouched on, and she fired off one last shot before the buzzer rang.

The group marched back out and clamored around the desk for their "kill sheets".

"Hell yeah!" Puck said. "87 kills for the Puckersauras. Top scorer for the night."

"I got 30," Dave said. "Not bad for my first time, I guess."

"48," Santana grumbled.

"You had Mr. Cheese on your ass all night," Sam said. "But you definitely outscored him," he added, pointing to the board.

"Yeah…and I guess it's not every day the asshole gets beat by an Atomic Schlong," Santana said, grinning.

As they grabbed their things from the locker, Santana noticed she had two messages from Quinn. She pressed the voice mail icon and held the phone up to her ear.

_Hey girl. I know you're shooting stuff, but I figured I'd leave you a message anyway. Rachel's running a 102.4 fever right now. She's also thrown up seven times since you left. She's good right now, but if her temp gets to 103, Kurt and I are taking her in. _

"What's wrong?" Blaine asked.

"Rachel's running a fever," Santana said. "Hold on, there's another message."

_Santana, it's Kurt. We're on our way to the ER right now. We think Rachel has appendicitis. Meet us there."_

"Load up! We've got to go to the hospital."

They made it in under 15 minutes, thanks to Sam's driving.

"Santana!" Kurt called. "They took her back about ten minutes ago. They won't tell us anything, though."

"What? That's bullshit!" Santana snapped. "Why not?"

"They can't release medical information without a legal guardian signing off on it," Quinn explained. "And we can't get a hold of her dads."

"Feel free to slap me later, Q, but did you try Shelby?"

Quinn quirked an eyebrow at her best friend.

"After they…semi-reconnected, the Berry's listed her as one of the contacts in case of emergency. I don't know any others…."

"Fuck, this night's about to get even weirder…" Finn mumbled.

"It's fine," Quinn said. "I've got her number from babysitting Beth. I'll call her."

"In the meantime, I'm going to update dad," Kurt said. "Santana, you keep calling the Berrys."

Shelby took less time to get there than Sam had. Finn called it before anyone saw her.

"Corcoran's here," he said, not looking up from his magazine.

"How do you—" Blaine started.

"Clacking of heels on tile that makes you want to cover your manhood and run," Finn explained.

"Good to know I can still produce that kind of fear," Shelby said. She passed Beth to a waiting Quinn. "Who do I need to talk to?"

"The receptionist has the paperwork ready for you," Santana said. "And I maxed out both Hiram and Leroy's voicemail about a minute and a half ago, so…now we wait."

Shelby nodded and gave her a small hug. "Be back in a minute.

Santana paced back and forth until Quinn stood in front of her. The blonde put her hands on Santana's shoulders.

"She's going to be fine. And stop feeling guilty. She'll want to wake up to her knight, not a guilt-ridden peasant."

Santana managed a chuckle.

"Right, guys," Shelby said, heading back over. "She's in surgery right now. They said her appendix hadn't ruptured, so she'll only have to stay overnight and tomorrow, probably. I'm going to stay with her, and Santana, I've signed a release form so you can come see her in the morning. Quinn, Puck—"

"We got Beth, Shelby," Puck said.

"Wait…can I stay with her instead?" Santana asked.

Shelby regarded her for a moment. "Would her fathers be okay with that?"

"I think so…. And I promise I'll keep you updated."

The teacher nodded after a moment. "Okay. But I'm waiting with you until she's out of recovery and into her room for the night."

Santana smiled and nodded.

"That'll be a while still," Quinn said. "Do you want us to get Beth to bed?"

"That would be awesome," Shelby said.

"No problem, Ms. C," Puck told her. "Give me your keys and I'll switch out her carseat."

Shelby handed him the keys to her Lexus. "No joy riding, Puckerman."

He gave her a winning smile and followed Quinn out.

"You're okay?" Finn asked Santana. "Do you need me to bring you anything?"

She shook her head and hugged him. "I'll be fine. Sleeping in my clothes for one night is no big deal."

"You haven't eaten, though," Kurt said.

"We'll swing by Breadstix," Finn told her.

"You two are saints."

"Next time you're yelling at us, we'll remind you of that," Kurt said, nudging her playfully.

"If it's not in writing, it doesn't count," Shelby told him, smirking.

"See you in a while," Finn said.

* * *

Santana loved Rachel. Cuddly Rachel, silly Rachel, diva Rachel…. But she realized the next day that she loved high-on-painkillers Rachel most of all. She grinned as she listened to Rachel explain the inner workings of the CIA. At least, that's what Santana decided her girlfriend was trying to tell her. She couldn't really understand.

"Well, at least we know the meds aren't keeping her down."

"Leroy!"

"DAD! Hoskd sdtj the wljdma?" Rachel asked.

"She's slurring still?"

"They gave her a metric shit ton of meds this morning," Santana muttered, trying not to laugh.

"Sorry we couldn't get here sooner. We were a bit…er…"

"Drunk?" Santana suggested, grinning.

"No, we are responsible adults who don't get drunk…" Hiram said.

Rachel giggled. "But Daddy sjkdlj-member that Thanksgibvdksjf wjslj Aunt Clara djajing with the Kahlua and asjeiwi naked in the backyard?"

Santana had to duck out of the room she was laughing so hard. She composed herself after a moment and entered again. "Sorry. You were saying?"

"Yes, well…we may have indulged a bit more than we could safely drive with. We left as soon as we could though."

"Wnnna go home," Rachel pouted.

"Two more hours, Princess."

"Maybe this will help pass the time," Hiram said. "We stopped by home to get you two a change of clothes, and this was in the mailbox."

It was an envelope from Julliard.

Santana gave the men a slightly panicked look, but Leroy mouthed "It's okay."

Rachel's eyes went wide. "Hol' my hand?"

"I'm right here, Princess."

Rachel tore the envelope down its side and opened the letter….

_**LbN: Let me know what you think! Also, there's a poll for the next Glee fic on my profile, if you want to vote. :)**_


	29. Sit Downs and Options

**Knights Nerds Naps**

Santana waved at Finn as he walked up. "Sup?" she asked.

"Not much. How's Rachel?"

"Pain killers are working their wonders, and her dad says she should be back in action by Wednesday. Just no dancing until next Monday. How's Kurt doing?" she asked, lowering her voice.

"He said he's full of ennui. Which I think means he's sad and panicking."

"But waitlisted isn't a no, necessarily," Santana said as they walked to class.

"Right. And he has an interview this afternoon with one of the directors and a teacher."

"Scary."

"I know. Hey," he said, pulling her aside. "I need to talk to you at lunch. I need…I need your advice."

Santana's eyes went wide and her mouth dropped open. "Is everything okay?" she asked.

Finn nodded vigorously. "Fine….I just… have some stuff going on and, I mean… you always tell the truth. Even if it hurts. And I think that's kind of what I need right now."

Santana smiled, nodded, and pulled him into a hug. The full weight of how far they'd come this year hit her like a Mack truck. "Sure. Me, you, Breadstix. We'll skip the last two classes if we have to, and you have my undivided attention."

Finn relaxed visibly and smiled too. "Thanks, Santana."

"Don't worry. We're bros now, right?"

"Right."

"One thing though. We're taking our backpacks in and eat with our notebooks and pens out. Just in case Ben Israel has spies. I don't want people thinking we're creepin' behind our ladies' backs."

Finn laughed as they walked into their history classroom.

* * *

"Do you need anything?" Kurt asked, seeing Rachel wince.

"No, I'm okay. They're reducing the amount of pain medicine I take every two days, but I've been doing alright. Just sore. Anyway, talk to me. What did they say about this interview?"

"When she called, Dr. Hendricks said it was with her and a theater teacher. She said not to worry; they interview all of their waitlisted candidates and that it was super casual."

"Are you going to have to sing?"

"I hope not," Kurt said, smiling. "We're meeting at the Lima Bean. That would be incredibly awkward."

"Indeed, it would be. Also, not that I'm not thrilled that you're here, but why are you not at school?"

"I threw up twice this morning. Dad knew it was nerves about the interview, but he still let me skip. Then when we were texting each other incessantly this morning, he called your dad and asked if I could keep you company."

"Got it. Don't worry, Kurt. You're going to nail this interview, and then we're going to New York together."

"You, me, and Santana…."

"And possibly Quinn. Genius got into Columbia as well."

Kurt shook his head, smiling. "It's going to be great."

"The first weekend there, we should all eat lunch in Central Park together."

"Watch the clouds…talk about our dreams…."

"It's going to be perfect," she said, giving him a light hug. "Now, there's something I need to tell you, and I know you're going to protest, but know that I've already made up my mind."

"I'm terrified."

"I'm coming with you this afternoon."

"What?" he asked. "You can't. You're supposed to be home!"

"No, I'm supposed to be limiting activity. I can't go to school for two days, because that's constant stress, but I'm not confined to my bed by any means."

"Your dads will kill me…."

"No they won't. They know how stubborn I am, trust me. I'll just sit in the corner while you have your interview. A visible, but silent presence of comfort."

"Somehow, I doubt your ability to be silent."

Rachel hit him with Mr. Penguin.

* * *

"Alright, start talkin'."

Finn took a sip of Coke and fidgeted. "There are two things. I'll start with the scarier one," he said, chuckling. "Sugar's dad wants to have another sit down with me."

Santana dropped her breadstick. "What?"

"I went over to their house for dinner on Saturday, and it went well…. I think. But afterwards he kind of patted me on the shoulder and gave me this look. Then he said 'I think we should talk this week. Man to man.' And all I could do was nod, because he is scary as hell."

"So…when do you have your come to Jesus?"

"That's the thing! We already had one. After he told me that, Sugar's mom wanted to show her their redesigned craft room, so her dad kind of pulled me into his study."

"This I have to hear."

* * *

"_Have a seat, my boy."_

_Finn sat and wiped his hands on his jeans._

"_I like you, son," Mr. Motta said, pouring himself a drink. He pulled a Sprite from the fridge and poured it for Finn. Sitting across from the boy, he leaned back in his chair. "My Sugar's dated a few boys in her years, but they…er…couldn't exactly handle her. It's no secret that the women in our family are high maintenance. It's part of why we love them. But Sugar…she's my angel. One of the only truly good things I've done with my life. And I don't want to see her hurt."_

"_I won't hurt her, sir. I promise."_

"_Oh, I know you wouldn't hurt her intentionally. You're a good boy—I can see it. I've known enough bad boys to be able to spot a genuinely good one. The problem is…how do I put this? You're still _just _a boy. I know a little more about you than you think. I know you have a temper—that's okay, I do too. And I know you say things you don't mean when you're hurting. Most people do. But you have to learn how to channel that—how to overcome it. That Rachel girl you dated, and the Quinn girl…they dealt with your back-and-forth style because they're strong. They know what they want, who they want, and how to cope. Now, imagine if your friend Santana were to do that kind of thing with Brittany, when they were together."_

_Finn flinched visibly._

"_Exactly. Brittany's strong in her own way, but she's also very innocent. That's my Sugar. My daughter thinks the world can be turned into a bright, shiny place with the right amount of zeroes after a number. In a way, she's right. But in a way, she's completely wrong. Do you understand what I'm getting at?"_

"_I think so…."_

_Mr. Motta nodded and smiled. "You're going to be a good man, Finn. I look forward to the day Burt and I look at you and all we want to do is buy you a stiff drink. But for now, while you're still a boy, try not to make any stupid boy mistakes that affect my kid."_

"_I'll…I'll do my best, sir. Plus, I always have Santana and Puck to beat some sense into me if I start messing up."_

_Mr. Motta threw back his head and laughed. "Yes…yes, it's always good to keep people like that around. Speaking of this Santana…I'd very much like to meet her. I'm always impressed by those who spend their lives protecting others. You bring her to our next sit down, right?"_

"_Er…yes, sir."_

* * *

"WHOA, pony!" Santana exclaimed, twirling her pasta around her fork. "He wants me there? How does he know all that stuff about us?"

"I have no idea. Sugar swears he's not in the mob, and I haven't seen a lot of shady people at their house when I've been."

Santana shook her head. "It's not the mob. He's too open about his money. Mobsters have a little restraint. Not much, but a little. He's probably a government official."

"In Lima?"

Santana shrugged. "Who knows? Maybe he's about to crack a drug cartel or a pedophile ring."

"Thanks for that image."

"Any time. Now, what's the second thing you wanted to talk about?"

"…I'm thinking of joining the Army."

* * *

Kurt got Rachel a seat on one of the chairs with footstools and made her put her feet up. He handed her her tea and almond cake, and kissed her forehead. "Wish me luck," he whispered.

"You're going to be fine," she said.

He nodded, and walked over to where Dr. Hendricks sat. "Dr. Hendricks," he said, putting out his hand.

"Kurt, it's so good to see you again. This is Professor Clayton. He teaches History of Theater at Julliard, and some classes at NYU."

"Just relax," Clayton said, smiling. "This is actually a good interview. We want to give you some…er…options, shall we say?"

"Really?" Kurt asked, confused. "Well, I'm…all ears."

"We looked through your profile, and rewatched your audition," Hendricks told him. "I was fully prepared to offer you a placement at our school. Still am, in fact. But this one here," she nodded at Clayton, "seems to want to steal you from me."

"I'm head of the Fashion Design department at NYU. Julliard is just my side job."

"That's one hell of a side job," Kurt quipped.

Clayton laughed. "Yes, yes it is. Listen, I don't know if you've noticed, but you're a fantastic dresser." He smiled when Kurt laughed. "No, I know it's a bit of a shock. I'm sure you've been laboring under the delusion that you're just an average high school trendsetter, but this is above and beyond. Plus, I Googled your name and found that you did some guest blogging for teen fashion week. That's pretty impressive. I don't know if fashion's on your radar at all for a college option, but I can guarantee that if you apply to NYU, you'll have a place in the program."

Kurt opened and shut his mouth wordlessly for a moment. "I…wow…."

"It's a lot to take in, we know," Hendricks said. "What I suggest is this. Go home today. Go ahead and apply to NYU and get your acceptance letter. Talk everything over with your family and then make a decision. You don't have to get back to Julliard until June sixth, and NYU's cutoff for acceptance is the…fifteenth, am I right?"

"That's right," Clayton said. "So you've got time to think it over."

"Wow," Kurt said again. "Well…I will. I'll think about it. This is amazing. Thank you."

"Don't mention it. Either way, I'll see you in the fall," Clayton said, standing and offering Kurt his hand.

When Kurt made it back to Rachel, she was in the middle of explaining the concept of underground theater to Santana and Finn.

"What's up, K-money?" Santana asked.

"How'd it go?" Rachel asked.

"You guys are never going to believe this…."

_**LbN: Last week to vote on what I'm writing next. Previews are in chapter 26 of this story. Poll is on my profile. It'll be live until 5:oo p.m. Central time on Sunday, August 26th. **_


	30. The Next Step

_**LbN: Short teaser chapter. Nationals is next! In the process of moving/starting a new job though. I'll try to have it up tonight or tomorrow, but no promises. :)**_

Santana and Rachel wandered downstairs to find Leroy and Hiram talking in low voices.

"Morning girls," Leroy said, nodding to the table. "We made breakfast."

"Orange scones?" Rachel asked suspiciously. "That's my favorite. What happened?"

Hiram smiled at Leroy. "Nothing bad. But we do need to talk to both of you."

Santana and Rachel glanced at each other and sat down to eat.

* * *

Finn never got up early on Saturday, but this was important. He'd had a hushed conversation with Burt and taken the Camry.

He pulled up to the recruitment office and shut off his phone. With a deep breath, he got out of the car and walked into the office. "Hi, I'm Finn Hudson. I have an appointment with Sergeant Miller."

"Of course. Have a seat for a moment."

* * *

"Coming," Quinn called, walking to answer the door. "Dad?" she asked, opening the door.

"Hi…er…sorry. Is this a bad time?"

"Mom's showing a house in Carmel," Quinn said, shrugging.

"I actually wanted to talk to you. If you have a minute."

Quinn paused for a long moment. "Do you still drink coffee? We could go to the Lima Bean."

"Coffee's good," he said, nodding.

"I'll grab my jacket."

* * *

Kurt stared down at his phone. Finally, he pressed the "Dial" button and listened to it ring.

"Daxter Clayton."

"Hi…Professor Clayton? This is Kurt Hummel."

"Kurt! How are you doing?"

"Very well, thanks. I had a few questions for you, if you had a minute."

"Sure thing! Fire away."


	31. Nationals

**Knights Nerds Naps**

The New Directions settled down in their rows near the back of the airplane. Will had read them their riot act before they got on the plane, so they were in "perfect angel mode".

All except Santana.

"Come on, Princess!" she whined under her breath.

"Absolutely not, Santana!" Rachel hissed.

"Please, baby!"

"No, we are not joining the Mile High Club!"

Santana pouted and wrapped an arm around Rachel. "Fine."

"We can talk about our impending New York trip to take your mind of the disappointment."

Santana rolled her eyes, but she couldn't help the grin that spread across her face. "You're okay with all of this?"

"It's…weird. But I'm okay with it. I'm actually excited about it."

"Excited about what?" Quinn asked, sitting down again. "That bathroom's disgusting, by the way."

"Our trip to New York."

"Right, Shelby's taking you, right?"

"Yeah…how'd you know?"

"She's letting Puck and me take Beth for the week."

"Sorry you got stuck with babysitting duties while we go exploring," Santana said.

"Nah, it's cool. We're excited. Reconnecting with the parents can't be all bad. Even if it's in reverse in our case."

"Yeah…. Speaking of…I heard Russell paid you a visit."

"Begging for forgiveness. He wants back in my life."

"Interesting."

"Terrifying. Forgiveness, I can do. Trust, not so much."

"Preach," Santana said.

"Let's just push it to the back of our minds for now," Rachel said. "Concentrating on the competition sounds much better than trying to figure out our respective family sagas."

"Amen," Quinn said.

* * *

Will Schuester was about to cry. He knew it, the kids knew it, Coach Beiste knew it….

"You guys…have come so far…."

There was a collective eye roll.

"Save him, Finndestructible," Santana said, smiling.

"Right! We're a family, we're going to rock this. Stop crying, Mr. Schue."

The teacher laughed and put his hand in the middle of the circle. The rest of the New Directions (plus Coach Beiste) put their hands in as well.

"Go out there; show them what you're made of.

* * *

Santana moved to the center of the stage as the last notes of Tongue Tied died away. Normally, she'd be nervous as hell, but Rachel had given her some extreme motivation before they'd taken the stage. She was ready.

"I know you're somewhere out there, somewhere far away…" she sang. "I want you back. I want you back."

The boys formed a semicircle around her, and Rachel came out from the side of the stage. Santana held out her hand and they began to dance.

_**My neighbors think  
I'm crazy  
But they don't understand  
You're all I had  
You're all I had  
At night when the stars  
Light up my room  
I sit by myself  
Talking to the Moon.  
Trying to get to you  
In hopes you're on  
The other side  
Talking to me too.  
Or Am I a fool  
Who sits alone  
Talking to the moon?**_

Mike and Tina took center stage to dance, as Puck, Kurt and Brittany sang the second verse.

_**I'm feeling like  
I'm famous  
The talk of the town  
They say  
I've gone mad  
Yeah  
I've gone mad  
But they don't know  
What I know  
Cause when the  
Sun goes down  
Someone's talking back  
Yeah  
They're talking back  
Ohhh  
At night when the stars  
Light up my room  
I sit by myself  
Talking to the moon.  
Trying to get to You  
In hopes you're on  
The other side  
Talking to me too.  
Or am I a fool  
Who sits alone  
Talking to the moon?**_

Finn and Mercedes stood at the top of the stage's stairs as they finished out the song.

_**Ahh... Ahh... Ahh...  
Do you ever hear me calling  
(Ahh... Ahh... Ahh...)  
Ho hou ho ho hou**_

**_'Cause every night_**  
**_I'm talking to the moon_**

**_Still trying to get to you_**  
**_In hopes you're on_**  
**_The other side_**  
**_Talking to me too_**  
**_Or am I a fool_**  
**_Who sits alone_**  
**_Talking to the moon?_**

**_Ohoooo..._**

_**I know you're somewhere out there**_  
_**Somewhere far away**_

As the audience clapped, the New Directions rushed to the front of the stage and knelt down around Blaine.

"Like a fool I went and stayed too long," he sang. "Now I'm wondering if your love's still strong—"

They did a series of twists and somersaults (choreographed by Brittany of course) and ended up in a star formation on stage. The juniors were in front of the seniors now.

_**Oo, baby, here I am, signed, sealed, delivered, I'm yours!  
Then that time I went and said goodbye  
Now I'm back and not ashamed to cry  
Oo, baby, here I am, signed, sealed, delivered, I'm yours!  
Here I am baby  
Signed, Sealed, Delivered, I'm yours  
(You got my future in your hands)  
Here I am baby  
Signed, Sealed, Delivered, I'm yours  
(You got my future in your hands)  
I've done a lot of foolish things  
That I really didn't mean, didn't I?  
Seen a lot of things in this old world  
When I touch them, they mean nothing, girl  
Oo, baby, here I am, signed, sealed, delivered, I'm yours!  
Oowee baby, you set my soul on fire  
That's why I know you're my heart's only desire  
Here I am baby  
Signed, Sealed, Delivered, I'm yours  
(You got my future in your hands)  
Here I am baby  
Signed, Sealed, Delivered, I'm yours**_

The audience jumped to its feet, clapping. With a glance at one another, New Directions lined up and took a final bow. They rushed off stage as the commentator began introducing the next group.

"You guys were fantastic!" Will yelled when they made it back to the green room. "I'm so proud of you—every single one of you."

"I think we've got a really good shot, Mr. Schue," Sam said.

"I know you do," their teacher agreed. "Okay…all of you grab some water. There's only one more group to go before the judging starts. Everyone take a deep breath—you were amazing out there."

"Holy shit, Quinn," Puck said. "Was that your dad out there? I don't think I've ever seen him in jeans…."

"He's sold all of his possessions, and he's moving to Uganda to teach English."

"Holy fuck," Santana said. "You left that out of the airplane recap."

"Yeah, well…. He wanted to see me win Nationals before he left," she said, smiling slightly.

"Speaking of winning Nationals, we've got twenty-five minutes before we have to be back on stage," Rachel said. "Potty break and water, guys!"

"Amen," Mercedes said. "I've had to go since Santana rocked that high E in the Bruno Mars song…."

* * *

"And now…we're pleased to bring out recording artist and actress, Hilary Duff!"

"Thank you, Sacha. This has been a great year for show choirs, and now the moment has come. It's time to name your 2012 National Show Choir Champions!" She took the envelope as the audience clapped. "In third place…from Tupelo, Mississippi, The Earwigs!"

There was a smattering of congratulatory applause as their director accepted the smallest trophy.

"Now…your 2012 Show Choir Champions…."

Santana tightened her grip on Rachel as the entire auditorium went quiet.

"From Lima, Ohio, the McKinley High New Directions!"

The noise was deafening as Mr. Schue gently pushed Rachel and Finn forward to accept their trophy and check.

Santana got tackled into a hug by Brittany and Quinn as confetti rained down on them and people snapped pictures. She spotted Rachel's dads in the audience and waved.

* * *

The plane was silent. Their flight had been delayed for five hours, so it was late by the time it finally took off.

Santana looked around at her sleeping teammates. She smirked when she spotted Kurt and Blaine asleep with the trophy in between them. It hadn't been pretty when the flight attendant had tried to take it from the earlier.

"Babe?" she whispered.

"Yeah?" Rachel said.

"So…did I do a good job?"

"I'd say you did, seeing as we won," Rachel said, smirking.

"Please? You promised!"

Rachel smiled at her and looked around. "Okay, let's go. Mile High Club, here we come."

_Thank you, sweet baby Jesus! _Santana yelled in her head. She followed Rachel back to the larger bathrooms.

There was still one person from their group awake. Rachel didn't notice, but Santana did.

Quinn winked at her, made a zipping motion across her lips, and went back to her book.

_**LbN: Let me know what you think! Only three or four chapters left, and I'm taking requests for the Summer chapter. Also, there's a new poll up on my profile, if you want to vote. :)**_


	32. Graduation

_**LbN: Sorry for the wait. I just moved into my house and I have no interwebz for another few weeks. I have located reliable wi-fi in the meantime though, so hopefully you won't have to wait until October for another update. :)**_

"Don't be jelly," Santana said, grinning.

"Then don't gloat," Rachel countered, kissing her.

"Come on… you have to admit this is one of the few times I'll ever get to do it when it comes to you. You beat me at everything."

"Except video games."

"True. So, you know, the whole valedictorian thing was a surprise."

"A good surprise. Though I have a bit of jealousy due to the fact that I'm used to being the best, I'm glad you got it. You deserve it."

"I'm just glad you guys helped me with the speech. And by 'helped' I mean 'basically wrote it for me'."

"We simply gave you a few helpful suggestions."

"Really, all I have to do is sing the national anthem, school song, and tell you guys to switch your tassels."

"The hard life of the top of the class…."

"Hush."

* * *

"When they told me I had to give a speech, I groaned. Out loud, in Principal Figgins' office, much to his dismay," Santana said, smiling at the principal. "But it wasn't because I didn't want to do it. I just wanted to avoid this being the same as every other valedictorian speech across America. So…with that in mind, I'm not going to talk to my fellow seniors. You know you can accomplish anything you set your mind to…blah, blah, blah…." She paused as the audience laughed. "I want to talk to our juniors."

Grand tradition at McKinley put the junior class in white robes behind the red robe-clad seniors. Once all the seniors were on stage, having accepted their diplomas and switched their tassels, the juniors would move forward—taking over as the new head class.

"Juniors, I've compiled a list of the top ten things you need to know as seniors. Seniors, sit tight and feel free to shout out 'Amen!' as the mood strikes you. Number ten: Slushies still fly freely, despite the removal of the machine. Bring a change of clothes."

There was some nervous laughter at this.

"Number nine: The slushie tosser can easily become the slushie victim in a matter of days. Bring a change of clothes."

There was outright laughter this time, along with some clapping.

"Eight: If you want to see Mr. Siles' nervous tick, use the non-word 'irregardless' in his classroom."

The teacher in question scowled playfully at the juniors and shook his head.

"Seven: No matter how hungry you are…NEVER eat the olive loaf casserole."

"AMEN!" half the seniors yelled. One boy stood up and started testifying….

"Six: Remember that there will always be someone who hates you because you're successful. You put the work in to get there; don't let them steal your accomplishments. Five: Believe in your own magic."

Rachel and the rest of the glee club smiled brightly at Brittany, who beamed up at Santana.

"Four: Don't dwell on things you've lost. Focus on the awesome things you gain along the way," she said, smiling at the Berry dads. "Three: Remember to lift and scrub."

The football, hockey, and male half of the wrestling team howled with laughter.

"Two: Don't get caught up in cliques. If it's too late to avoid it, let go of it. You'll be amazed at the amazing people around you, if you're just willing to take a chance."

She spotted Schue and Beiste looking a little teary eyed, and smirked. That would end soon.

"And last, but not least…expect the unexpected, and for the love of god, bring a change of clothes!"

At this, the entire senior class pulled out umbrellas and ducked for cover, as the specially rigged buckets dumped slushie over the junior class.

There were scandalized looks from a few of the parents, but you couldn't really tell since most of them, and the teachers, stood up and cheered.

"From the seniors, to you," Santana said, laughing, "Take care of McKinley."

Figgins, rolling his eyes, stood up and walked to the podium. "Not to worry, junior class. We have now shut the air conditioner off, so you don't catch pneumonia. We will now read the names of the seniors, and they will receive their diplomas. Azimio Heather Adams—University of the Incarnate Word, San Antonio."

"His middle name is Heather?" Kurt hissed.

"Shhh!" Rachel said.

There was a constant stream of clapping as the seniors and their colleges were announced. It may have been her imagination, but Santana was pretty sure that the cheers got loudest when a Gleek was announced.

"Rachel Barbara Berry—Julliard School."

"Michael Robert Chang—London Academy of Dance."

"Lucy Quinn Fabray—Yale University."

"Finn William Hudson—United States Air Force."

The glee club's gasps were drowned out by enormous applause.

"Did you know about this?" Puck yelled over the crowd.

Mike and Rachel shook their heads, but Kurt and Santana just shrugged.

"Kurt Ian Hummel—New York University School of Design and Fashion."

"Mercedes Elise Jones—UCLA School of Medicine."

"Santana Maribel Lopez—internship at Ernst, Wilde and Graves Law Firm, New York City."

"Brittany Susan Pierce—London Academy of Dance."

"Noah Oscar Puckerman—Texas Tech University."

* * *

"THAT is how to end a speech!" Puck called, giving Santana a high five.

"Thanks, bro," Santana said, grinning. She was only half paying attention, scanning the crowd.

"Your ass is mine, Snix!" Blaine called, running over to hug her. He'd just been hosed off by the soccer coaches. "Congrats…."

"Thanks, Warbz."

"They're not here," he said quietly. "I'm sorry."

She shrugged and stopped searching. "Stupid of me to even hope they'd come."

"No…it's not. You wanted them here. It's understandable."

"No big. Time to party it up with my smoking hot girlfriend and my bros, right?"

"My girlfriend is such a sweet talker," Rachel said, coming up behind Santana and hugging her tightly.

"Hey guys!" Finn said, running up. "Good, you're all together. I wanted to introduce you to my recruiter…. This is Sergeant Miller."

"Pleasure," the older man said.

"I know I kind of blindsided most of you…" Finn said sheepishly.

"Kind of?" Puck asked.

"Most of us?" Rachel asked, looking over at Santana.

"It was his news to share when he decided what to do," the older girl said, kissing Rachel's head. "At least I talked him out of the Army."

"Well done, you," Miller said, giving her a nod.

"Proud of you, buddy," Puck said, punching Finn on the arm.

"We all are, homeboy," Mercedes agree.

"My dad wants you all over for a graduation party!" Sugar announced. "Breadstix is catering, just so you know."

"Lead on, Motta!" Santana said, taking Rachel's hand. She scanned the crowd behind them once more, heart sinking a bit. She caught Rachel looking at her and smiled. Kissing her, she pulled her closer as they followed the New Directions to the parking lot.

_**LbN: I still need prompts for the summer chapter! That's up next, so send them in ;)**_


	33. Family Ties

**Knights Nerds Naps**

Santana loved summer. She loved everything about it. Cookouts…Rachel in a swimsuit…no school…Rachel in a swimsuit…blockbuster movies…Rachel in a—

"Argh!"

"My eyes are up here, Santana," Rachel said, taking a sip out of her water bottle.

"Did you have to splash me?"

"Yep. So…what are you up to today?"

"Errands."

"That's what you said last time."

"That's what I did last time. I even came back with your favorite vegan cupcakes."

Rachel heaved a dramatic sigh. "Fine…don't tell me. But I have a dinner date, so it's cool if you're out long."

"Say what?"

"Shelby. She's taking me and Quinn out for some Mommy-Daughter-Mommy time."

"That sounds…"

"Intensely fucked up?"

"That."

"She just…she's trying," Rachel said, smiling. "I think she wants to make sure everyone is cool with the whole—"

"Us going off to New York and letting Quinn have Beth all to herself for a while plan?"

"That."

"That's cool. I'm glad she's trying," Santana said, smiling. She swung her legs over the edge of the lounge chair and pulled Rachel into her lap. "And by the way, I promise I'm not up to anything nefarious. I'm not building nuclear weapons in your dads' basement, or plotting Barbara Streisand's untimely demise."

Rachel poked Santana in the side, trying not to smile. "Not funny. And I know you're not. I was just curious. Want to go to the water park tomorrow? I know some of the other gleeks are going."

"Sure. I'll hop on any excuse to see you in that," she said, leering at her girlfriend.

"I'm sure that's not all you'd like to hop on…."

"Rachel!"

* * *

Russell Fabray stood smiling at the two women in front of him. "This is it, I guess."

"You take care of yourself," Judy said, squeezing his arm gently.

"I will. Quinn? May I—"

Quinn didn't let him finish. She hugged him tightly for a moment. "Be safe."

He nodded. "I know you still haven't forgiven me for what I put you through. Maybe you never will—I wouldn't blame you. But if, one day, you can look back at today and say that you were half as proud of me as I am of you…that'll be enough. I'm sorry I'm missing graduation, but your present is at home in your room. You're not allowed to be practical with it. Do something fun." He kissed her forehead and squeezed his ex-wife's hand. Picking up his rucksack, he made his way to the security line.

* * *

Things were surprisingly calm and un-awkward that night at Breadstix. Shelby had finally put the camera down after about a thousand pictures, and was trying not to grin like a numpty. "I'm sorry," she said, smiling brightly. "I just…I'm really happy you both agreed to this."

"It's cool, Shelby," Quinn said, smiling back.

"Yeah, we were pretty excited about this too," Rachel told her.

Quinn giggled. "So…what does this make me and Rachel?"

"What?" Shelby asked.

"You're her mom, Beth's her sister. I'm Beth's mother…. Oh my god, I'm Rachel's second mother…."

Rachel inhaled a good deal of water and began to choke as she laughed. She held up a hand as Quinn slapped her on the back a few times. "I'm fine."

Shelby, meanwhile, was trying not to break down laughing. In her mind, she knew that these two had a rough history, but she really couldn't picture it.

"I want Twitter updates every three hours," Quinn told them. "And you better—"

"I know, I know. Get a picture of your library. Nerd."

"You dig nerds—you're dating Santana after all."

Rachel made a big show of looking around. "I'm surprised she didn't materialize out of thin air and threaten to cut you for that remark."

This time, Shelby did laugh.

* * *

"Eat, Santana!"

"Abuela, I'm full," Santana insisted, smiling. "Really, I think you fed me half the chicken."

"I did. It's good for you. You look like you're wasting away. Will you help me with the decorations?"

"_Por supuesto_."

They sat tying ribbons to the programs for a while before the older woman spoke again.

"When are you going to introduce me to your _amor pequeña_?"

Santana's eyes rose for a moment, but she looked down quickly. "I told you I'd bring her to the family reunion, remember?"

"I remember. But I want to meet her before then. Before she's overwhelmed by our _locos_."

Santana laughed. "Okay."

"You bring her by tomorrow. I'll have plenty of vegetables on the grill and the two of you can tell me all about your plans for New York."

Smiling at her grandmother, Santana nodded. She found it was hard to form words at the moment, and desperately tried to keep her shit together.

"None of that Santana Maribel. I did not help raise a crier. You are a fighter. You save tears for when you can't go any longer. And I know you have fight left in you. It hurts, when family turn their backs on you. I know this. But you live for those you still have. You have me. And your Tio Rufio, who has been trying to beat some sense into your father. You have your Rachel, and her fathers. Your parents' pride is standing in the way of their being a part of your life. That is their shame and their burden to bear, Santana. Don't make it yours."

The younger woman smiled, and went back to tying bows.

* * *

Rachel flung herself on the bed next to Santana when she got in later that night. "I see your errands included cupcakes again," she said, grinning.

"Gotsta keep my tiny diva happy," Santana said. "About my errands…I can now sweep away the mystery, if you'd like."

"Of course I'd like!"

"I've been hanging out with my grandmother. She needed help getting some stuff for the family reunion together."

"That's sweet of you, Santana. But why couldn't…"

"She's insisting that she meets you before the reunion. I didn't really know how to bring it up. Abuela's a little…intense sometimes. By the way, will you come with me to spend time with my insane relatives next week?"

Rachel rolled her eyes, smiling. "Of course I will. And I'd be happy to meet her anytime before that as well."

"Good, because we're going over for lunch tomorrow."


	34. Summer Days, Drifting Away

**Knights Nerds Naps**

Santana held Rachel tightly and tried to sleep. It wasn't working. Her mind was racing. They'd been in New York for two days, looking at dorms for Rachel and apartments for Santana. It had been fun, and she'd seen a side of Rachel she'd never seen before. Her girlfriend didn't need any time to adjust to the pace of the city. She didn't make any country bumpkin mistakes when ordering from food carts or hailing cabs. Rachel Berry was New York. And an odd feeling that Santana had first felt at the family reunion was coming back in force.

* * *

"_Santana, I like your Rachel."_

"_You told me, Abuela," Santana said, smiling and watching as Rachel played with her younger cousins._

"_I feel the need to reiterate. She's smart and good with kids, and she has goals. And you challenge each other. It's a good match."_

_Santana wasn't really paying attention. She was watching Rachel swing Tonio, Tio Rufio's son, around by his arms. An odd feeling was starting to grow inside her. _

"_Oh, dios mio, Carla! Santana's looking at Rachel the way Cris looks at you. SANTANA, you are not allowed to get Rachel pregnant until AFTER you both graduate college."_

_The adults laughed as Santana gave her grandmother a look. "Very funny."_

"_I'm not joking."_

"_You do know that I don't have the equipment for that, right?"_

"_Yes, but you're looking at her like you're picturing white picket fences and kids and a dog."_

_Santana just shook her head._

* * *

In fact there hadn't been any white picket fences in Santana's fantasy, but there had been a couple of white dresses, and a minister. They'd said the "L" word already, of course, but the overwhelming feeling of "Holy shit, I want to marry you as soon as fucking possible" was a bit new to Santana.

"You'll wake her up if you keep thinking so loudly," Shelby whispered from the other bed.

"You don't have to whisper. She sleeps like a log. Can't sleep?"

"I have an interesting sleep schedule because of Beth. Quinn's probably going to have the same one by the time we get back, although she'll probably get back to normal quicker."

"This might sound mean, but I really can't wait to see Quinn with dark circles under her eyes. She and Rachel seem to share the same looks-perfect-no-matter-what gene."

Shelby laughed quietly. She sat up, stretched once, and lay back down. "Why can't you sleep?"

"I want to marry your daughter."

"I think Beth's a little young for you…."

"You know what I mean. And before you start feeling any residual guilt, Papas Berry caught me staring at Rachel the other day and I said the same thing. So you're not the first to know."

Santana couldn't see it, but Shelby smiled. "Good to know. Just wait until she has a few runs in _Les Mis_ before you two run off and start having kids."

"Wicked," Rachel said sleepily, making the other two jump. "Starting in Wicked, not _Les Mis_."

Santana and Shelby rolled their eyes in the dark.

* * *

"I think we should go shopping for her," Kurt said.

"Oh hell yeah," Mercedes agreed.

"I'll sit that one out," Puck told them.

"Can we give her ice cream?" Artie asked. "Is that baby-safe?"

"Yeah, she's not lactose intolerant or anything," Quinn said, feeding Beth a spoonful of the strawberry flavored dessert. She caught an older woman's eye, and glared. The woman had been whispering about them the entire time they were there. She'd even pointed a couple of times. "Can I help you?" she finally asked.

The woman's husband huffed. "You shouldn't have gotten pregnant if you didn't want people to stare at your bad decisions. Human nature—we can't help but wonder."

Quinn's mouth dropped open. Before she could form a proper response, Puck had jumped to his feet.

He picked Beth up out of her high chair and walked over to the couple. "First, don't call our daughter a bad decision. What we did to get her—that was a bad decision. She isn't. Got it?"

The couple remained silent.

"Second, look at her bracelet."

The man's eyes dropped to a little silver i.d. bracelet on Beth's left wrist. "B. Corcoran. So?" he asked, in a weak show of bravado.

Puck pulled out his wallet. "Noah Puckerman." He nodded over at Quinn. "Quinn Fabray. But she's a Corcoran. Meaning we gave her up. Because it was a good _decision_—for her. So if you want to go around judging people because they haven't lived perfect lives like you…that's your business. But leave my daughter and her mother out of it." He turned back to them. "Let's roll, guys." With that, he hefted Beth's pink, sparkly diaper bag onto his shoulder, and walked out of the Dairy Queen.

"Right now…I would totally sleep with him," Quinn muttered.

"Hear, hear," Kurt said. "But you're going off to Yale in six weeks, so please don't."

Quinn smiled and nudged him playfully as the group followed Puck out.

* * *

Rachel was the first to her feet as Elphie and Glinda took their final bow. She bounced up and down, clutching Santana's arm as the cast sang the last bit of "One Short Day," bowed, and the curtain fell.

"I take it you enjoyed it?" Santana asked.

"Shut up," Rachel said, still grinning.

"Alright, you two, come on. We have somewhere to be."

"It's after ten. Where do we have to be?"

"Don't worry, it'll be quick. Well, as quick as it can be." She smiled, and led them through another door.

A security guard gave them a nod. "Evening Ms. Corcoran."

"Hi Gary," she said.

"Wait a second…" Santana said.

"Are we…?" Rachel asked.

Jackie Burns (still dressed as Elphaba) and Allie Mauzey (still dressed as Glinda) stood before them as they rounded the corner.

"Hi Shelby," Jackie said. "Enjoy the show?"

"As always. This is Rachel, and her girlfriend, Santana. Girls, we can get a quick picture. Rachel, honey, this is no time to go catatonic…. Go on, stand with them."

"O…okay."


	35. Goodbye

_**LbN: Last one! Thanks for sticking with me!**_

They had to take Leroy's car plus a UHaul. Rachel's morning and evening regimen routine products took up three suitcases on their own. They were loading the last couple of boxes into the truck when a Benz pulled up.

"You've got to be kidding," Santana muttered. She walked down to the sidewalk where her father had just parked.

"Getting ready to set off?" he asked.

"Yeah. We've got to be in place for Rachel's orientation and my first day."

He nodded. "Well…we're proud of you. I…uh…saw the pictures of your apartment. Very nice. Er…will you be able to handle it on your own? I mean… money wise."

"Of course, I will."

"We haven't gotten you a graduation gift yet."

"I don't need one."

"Still…I paid your rent for a full year, and I have a card on file at a couple of furniture stores in New York. Decorate however you want."

"I didn't need you to do that," Santana said with barely suppressed frustration.

"I know. But we wanted to. Your mother's in Florida working a case, but she wanted me to wish you the best. We'll see you at Christmas."

"Really? Because you didn't last year."

He sighed. "Santana…please. I know we haven't…there have been things…what I'm trying to say is this: we can't change the past. But moving forward…your mother and I want to be in your life. We've missed a lot. We don't want to miss anymore." He kissed her on the forehead. "Call if you need anything."

Santana nodded stiffly. She walked back to the car once he'd driven off.

"Ready?" Hiram asked.

"Of course."

* * *

Blaine and her mom were loading the last boxes into the UHaul. Shelby was there. She didn't care though. Quinn knelt down in front of Beth and took her hands. "When you were born, I told you I was leaving you. I didn't. Not really. Because your mom decided I could be in your life. She didn't want you to ever wonder about me, or why I gave you up. But now I am leaving. I have to. But I promise, you're still the most important person in my life. You're my one perfect thing. I'm going to send you a postcard every week, so you know I'm thinking about you. So when you're older, and you start to understand this…whole thing, you'll know I may have left, but I never stopped loving you."

Her mother and Rachel came in then.

"Bye, Beth."

"Kin!" Beth yelped. It had been her second word after "Mama". Her mother's name.

Shelby hugged Quinn, and then Rachel. "Have fun. Be safe."

"Thank you," Quinn said. She turned to Rachel. "I'm ready. Blaine out there with Santana?"

"Yeah. My bet's on her crying first, but I don't know."

"The bromance of the century, those two."

* * *

"I'll come visit you," Blaine said, sniffling. "I'll be up there when we move Kurt in anyway."

"Cool. We'll be able to chill in my apartment. I have an extra bedroom for guests."

They stood in silence as the Berry fathers tried to act occupied.

Santana threw her arms around Blaine. "Don't let your dad take you to any other fight clubs, okay? Puck's not here to scare everyone away from you anymore."

"It's okay. I'll be fine; don't worry about me."

"Can't help it," she said, letting a few tears slip out. "You're my bro."

"Skype with me?"

"Definitely. Just…make sure it's not right after you've had Skype sex with Kurt."

Blaine snorted. "Noted. Take care of yourself."

"Courage."

"Always."

* * *

It took two days to get Santana and Rachel settled in, and another two to drive to New Haven and get Quinn set up. That Sunday, the girls had said goodbye to the three parents. They'd had lunch at Santana's apartment, and watched three movies.

"Okay," Quinn said, standing up. "It's obvious we're stalling. Come on…. I've got to get back to New Haven, and Rachel's got her first day of orientation tomorrow. You have your first day of work. So…." She pulled two envelopes out of her purse. "Used part of my graduation gift for these. I have one too."

"Metro North passes?" Rachel said.

"We're going to see each other plenty," Quinn said. "We have to now, those were fucking expensive. But for now we have to go."

The other two nodded. The three girls shared a quick hug.

"I'll drop Rachel off on my way to the train station," Quinn said. "You go get ready for tomorrow."

"Why can't I come?" Santana whined.

"Because you won't get back from Rachel's dorm until late, and then you'll stay up even longer. Go on, first impressions and all that."

Santana nodded, kissed Rachel, and ruffled Quinn's hair. "See you soon, Q."

"I'll call you tomorrow after orientation," Rachel said, waving as she followed Quinn out of the apartment. "Bye."

"Bye."

_**Fin**_


End file.
